The Invisible
by O hIcidhe
Summary: AU: Naruto has had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a runin with the school badass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. If Sasuke can't see him, no one will see him again. NaruSasu & others. Yaoi, language.
1. Chapter 1

**EDIT: Just fixed a few things like Naruto's parents death. It's better now, I promise. **

Hi! I'm new here, sorry if my writing's crap. I don't write fanfiction often _(i.e. never)_ so forgive me if I can't keep everyone in character all the time... feel free to blame me if there are grammar or spelling errors, or if it just plain sucks _(but please don't...::whines::)_

**Disclaimer**: Oh, how I wish. Not mine; Naruto& company are copyrighted to Kishimoto, the movie _The Invisible_ is copyrighted to...someone else..._(woops.)_

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence (will get worse for a bit later), YAOI.

**Pairings**: InoNaru (minor), OroSasu (minor), NaruSasu (main, but later)...

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

**The Invisible**

* * *

Uzumaki Naruto had always had dreams of being invisible. He'd be sitting at the table with his friends, his family, his aunts and uncles—not that he actually had any, but in the dream he did—and he'd be completely invisible.

Normally, Naruto was a hard person to miss. With a wild main of bright blond hair, piercing blue eyes, unusually tan skin, and a grin that could charm the pants off the President, he was a pretty noticeable person. Half a life-time of living in the shadows of society had taught him to be loud and proud, both of himself, his heritage, and his achievements in life.

And so, the dreams were weird. Not inconceivable, just weird.

Because sometimes—just sometimes—he felt invisible too. That was mostly at home, though at school it happened on and off as well, just like it does to everyone. His aunt, Tsunade, had taken him in after his parents died in a car accident, and because she worked full time at the local hospital, she was rarely home, and when she was home, she was busy.

But the dreams scared him. The utter helpless feeling of being completely invisible, when no one you knew or cared about could see you, could notice you, notice if you'd died; it made him feel sick.

So when he had the dreams, he would smile extra bright, wear his favourite orange shirt—sometimes his orange cargo pants (no one could figure out where he had found them, they only knew that he was ecstatic when he had)—and be even more noticeable than before.

And then he would write his dream down in his notebook and hope that no one would ever read it.

Kiba was the first person to notice that these days were getting more and more frequent, but he never mentioned it.

* * *

May 18th, 6:45 in the morning. Naruto sat at the table, staring blankly at his happy, happy breakfast plate. The eggs were kind of runny, and the bacon was just a little burnt, but it was a decent breakfast. If it weren't for the fact that it was 6:45 in the morning, he might have appreciated it.

"Naruto."

He blinked sleepily, and cocked his head at the plate. He hadn't seen the happy bacon-mouth move, but the plate had definitely said his name.

"Naruto, you look pale. Are you feeling okay?"

He blinked again, and turned his tired gaze to his aunt, who stood behind the kitchen counter, long honey-blond hair pulled back into two loose pony-tails, arms crossed under her ample bosom.

She was reading the newspaper.

"How could ya tell?"

Tsunade raised her eyes from the newspaper and glowered at him.

"Eat. I have to be at the hospital in half-an-hour. If you don't eat, I won't make you ramen later."

That woke him up. Ramen, food of the Gods, was the only thing that made life bearable. His eyes widened in terror.

"But granny! You can't do that! I need my ramen!" Desperation laced his voice. Without ramen, his life was over.

"Then eat. And don't call me Granny!"

Naruto grumbled, his face contorted into a pout. His breakfast was too happy. He viciously stabbed one egg-eye with his fork, and turned his bacon-smile upside-down.

* * *

"Dude! Whazzap!"

Naruto turned to look down the hallway at the source of the obnoxious call. Only one person in Konoha High could possibly be that loud and annoying aside from himself. Inuzuka Kiba.

"Hey, dude, you gotta help me. French final, I got no fuckin' clue what to do!"

The blonde reached his locker and fiddled with the lock on it, hiking his orange backpack higher up on his shoulder.

"Uuzuumaakiiiii! You gotta heellpp meee…" the spiky-haired brunette whined, clinging onto Naruto's sleeve in desperation. His cheeks were scrunched with his pleading, making the red triangle tattoos on them distorted.

"Whaddya want me to do about it dog-breath?!" Naruto scowled. As a promise to his late father, Naruto tried his best in school at all times. While for the most part his best was slightly crappy, and he never could keep his attention on one subject for too long, he still gave it effort, and managed to uncover a decent talent in writing that not many people had expected. Unfortunately for Kiba, his talent did not stretch to the romance languages. "I've never taken French in my life!"

Kiba wilted, still hanging off Naruto's sleeve. "I'll pay you! You just have to write me something, then I can find someone else to translate it into French! Pleeeaaaassseee..."

"No, dog-face. I won't help you cheat! You're not gonna go anywhere if you keep trying that." Naruto shook his friend off of him as the bell rang loud and shrilly, and hurried off to his English class before the next bell.

When he entered the classroom, Jiraiya, the white-haired English teacher, was already seated behind his desk, giggling to himself over some perverted poetry book. Where he had found a perverted poetry book was anyone's guess, but it was pretty damn raunchy to make the biggest pervert in the school giggle like a teenage girl.

Naruto sat in his usual seat next to Yamanaka Ino, the one of the prettiest girls in the senior class. Her long silvery-blond hair was pulled back into its usual high pony-tail, with side bangs that framed her delicate features. A sky blue tank-top that matched her eyes hugged her torso perfectly, accentuating every curve in her body.

She grinned at him when he sat, and leaned close.

"You going to the Hyuuga's party on Friday? It's gonna be great," she winked. Top flirt, prettiest girl, reasonably smart; anyone would relish in her affections. Luckily for Naruto, he was the most often recipient, ever since Hyuuga Neji started dating some college freshman.

"Gyeeh, I can't. I've got tons of shit to do," Naruto shrugged apologetically. He had been waiting for ages for that week to arrive, and he wasn't about to blow all his precious plans for a party he wouldn't like all that much. The Hyuuga's were snobs.

"What?" Ino frowned attractively—nothing could ruin her fine features—"But school's almost over. We've practically graduated already; how could you possibly be busy?"

Naruto opened his mouth to answer, when the late bell rang, and Jiraiya pulled himself away from his perverted book.

"Alright, brats! You all had to write a poem last night, so instead of slacking off, you'd best have gotten your asses to work! Gimmie what you got! Akimichi, why don't you read yours for us?"

Naruto turned his head to look at the chubby boy as he grumbled, but got up from his seat. Akimichi Chouji was one of the less motivated kids in the class—or rather, motivated by the wrong things, which seemed to affect his social status, even though he really was a sweet boy.

"I wrote a haiku." Chouji cleared his throat, holding his notebook out in front of him.

"The love of my life,

Your beauty astonishes.

I love barbeque."

There was silence in the classroom for a moment. Jiraiya sighed, face drawn with exasperation.

"And, you wrote that...yourself."

Chouji looked proud. There was an annoyed murmur from the back of the classroom as Nara Shikamaru lifted his head from his early nap to clap belatedly. The rest of the class followed unenthusiastically, and Naruto felt his brain dribble out his ears just a little more.

Jiraiya turned on his heel, patrolling the classroom, his broad frame squeezing between tables.

Naruto didn't pay any attention to the rest of the readers, too busy chatting with Ino, when a large hand slapped solidly onto his shoulder, making him jump and squeak in a devastatingly un-manly way.

"Uzumaki. Why don't you go," Jiraiya said, grinning almost sadistically. Naruto whined pathetically, "It needs work!" but the old pervert was unrelenting.

The blond hung his head, before bounding up from his seat and to the front of the class, where he propped himself on Jiraiya's desk. He opened his notebook and flipped to the last night's assignment.

The assignment was to write about a dream. Chouji's had been about barbeque. Naruto couldn't exactly remember his, but had written anyway. He was almost proud of it, but it wouldn't do to tell his classmates that.

"When I sleep, the night flows in.

Through me, around me,

I feel within me, the shadows of dying light.

I hear it crawl, I watch it breath,

It circles around, like birds of prey.

My dreams are broken, but bright,

Like the—"

The bell rang again. Class was over.

* * *

TBC.

* * *

Poems are mine, yes I realize that they're crap, I wrote both of them in about 10 minutes. Naruto's probably completely OOC _(so emo...!)_, and I'm sorry about that, but he sorta has to be...it'll get better later, hopefully. 

Also: I LOVE CHOUJI. He'd make the best plushie ever...


	2. Chapter 2

SO. _Apparently_, 'cause no one reviewed, you _obviously_ don't care if this is crap or not, so I'm just gonna keep posting!

...yeah. I'm just a whiny-face. Ignore me...

**Disclaimer**: Not minez.

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence (will get worse for a bit later), YAOI (later). OOCness. (Kiba's a wuss, Sasuke's scary--not that that's much different, but whatever.)

**Pairings**: InoNaru (minor), OroSasu (minor), NaruSasu (main, but later)...(too many parentheses...)

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

Kiba washed his hands in the bathroom after biology class, nose still stinging from the overpowering smell of dead fish. The sleeves of his hoodie were rolled up to his elbows as he tried to remove fish guts from under his fingernails. He didn't hear the door open behind him because of the water. 

He certainly noticed when he was grabbed from behind and slammed into the mirror.

"Hallo, fucker."

Sakon and Tayuya, two of the most terrifying seniors in Konoha. It wasn't just their reputation—Sakon was rumoured to have killed someone sometime, as well as had an incestuous gay relationship with his twin brother (though no one knew if he actually had a brother, as no one had ever seen him), and Tayuya, despite being in the band, had a mouth that could make a sailor blush like Hyuuga Hinata, and could beat the crap out of anyone dumb enough to call her girly (she was also rumoured to have killed someone)—but also the people they hung out with that made them so very dangerous.

The two pressed him onto the sink counter. Sakon held his right arm, Tayuya held his left. The pink haired girl, completely unmindful of being in the men's room, was snarling at him, apparently not pleased with something. Sakon just leered from under a curtain of light purple hair, his black lipstick utterly disconcerting.

"Sasuke-kun's not pleased with you," Tayuya hissed.

Kibe felt himself whimper, but didn't dare to cry out for help when the bathroom door swung open again. In walked a tall, pale boy, dressed all in black. His pants were a couple sizes too large, and held up by a thick leather belt. He wore a ribbed turtleneck all the way up to his jaw, and a hoodie sweatshirt only half zipped. His hair was hidden in the hood, and his eyes were shadowed, but his fine-boned face, pale skin, and emotionless features were all easily identified.

Uchiha Sasuke.

He had been the smartest, most popular kid in middle school. He was still the smartest, but something had happened the summer before eighth grade, and when he had come back, everyone was terrified of him. Including the teachers. It was a wonder that, despite his genius, he had managed to stay in high school all that time.

"Inuzuka. Where the fuck is my money?"

"I'm still getting it. I-I swear, I'm broke right now, but I've been working, a-and I k-know that you need it, and I promi—I _swear_ that I-I'll get it. I'm w-working on selling some s-stuff right now, and I'll really, really get it to you b-by F-Friday, I swear—"

It was Wednesday. There was no way he could get that money in time, but he could try.

Sasuke reached into one deep pocket of his pants and pulled out a switchblade. He flipped it open, and Kiba felt a lump in his throat as he looked at it. He could feel tears stinging his eyes.

"Fuck, man, I _swear_—I'll get it!"

Tayuya growled, pissed, and grabbed his hand, slamming it palm-down onto the counter. Sasuke lowered the knife, and held Kiba's hand down too, his fingers pale and long, tipped with chipping black nail polish. With one swift move, he dug the knife into the side of Kiba's thumb.

Sakon slapped a hand over Kiba's mouth as he cried out. The feminine-looking boy whispered into his ear, "You'd best have that money soon, or it'll be worse. Trust me."

Kiba whimpered against Sakon's hand, tears leaking out his eyes as he tried in vain to control himself.

Sasuke pulled the knife back and closed it up, allowing Tatuya and Sakon to release the brunette. He reached out and patted Kiba harshly on the cheek.

"Don't cry, dog-boy. It's just a little cut." He smirked, just a tiny quirk of his lips, and stalked out, his heavy combat boots thumping loudly on the floor, and called back: "_Friday_, Inuzuka."

The other two seniors followed him, Tayuya turning back once to spit at the injured boy. Then they were gone.

Kiba picked himself up from his sprawled position on the counter, still shaking. He turned back to the sink to rinse the cut—Sasuke was right, it was fairly small, but it hurt like a bitch, and it was really the thought that counted—before heading off to the nurse to get a band-aid, and then to the cafeteria to meet Naruto.

* * *

Naruto was already scarfing down food happily by the time Kiba reached the lunch room. The blonde grinned widely as his friend slipped into the room, casting a cautious look around. Sasuke and his crew were already sitting all the way to the left, as far away from other people as they could manage without actually leaving the room. Kiba breathed a sigh of relief, and stepped quickly into line for food. 

Naruto raised an eyebrow—or attempted to, as he'd never figured out how to raise just one—when the brunette bounced over to the table, holding his lunch tray weirdly. Then he noticed the bandaid on Kiba's thumb, and the other eyebrow came up.

Kiba shrugged, and shook his head.

"'S nothing, just a paper-cut." He attacked the slightly soggy hamburger, ravenous. It's strange how hungry being threatened makes you. "So, you goin' to Hyuuga's?" he mumbled around the meat.

Naruto made a disgusted face, before ignoring the others' lack of manners.

"No, I have something I gotta do."

Kiba made a confused noise, and stared at him over his lunch. Then he grunted, again with his mouth full, and attempted to speak, with little success.

Naruto took pity on his friend.

"Y' know that writer's course in England the old man was talking about earlier this year? Well, I, Uzumaki-Naruto-The-Great, got in! I'm leaving tomorrow night!" He bounced excitedly, unable to contain himself.

Kiba delicately choked on his food.

"Dude!" he said after he finished coughing, "That's amazing! I should totally come with you! We could be British together!"

Naruto laughed loudly, before a movement from the corner caught his eye. Tayuya was threatening Sakon with bodily harm across the room. He glanced down at Kiba's hand, which was waving wildly at that point, and the bandaid on it.

"Kiba..."

Said boy stopped prattling, confused by his friend's sobering tone.

"Has Uchiha-bastard been after you again?"

Kiba shifted. He nodded.

"You shoulda gotten a phone from RadioShack, that asshole wouldn't be on your case if you had," Naruto said, surprising Kiba with his sincerity.

Kiba gave a wide grin, that looked more like a grimace, to cover up the awkwardness he felt.

"You know my dad, he won't give me money for anything. Heh, I'm completely broke..." His eyes fell along with his face. "I was thinking of selling my bike to get the money..."

"How are you gonna buy a plane ticket, when you can't even pay for a cell phone?"

Kiba grinned again. "Well, when you're famous, you can just pay for my ticket!"

"How much do you owe him?"

He looked panicked. "Wha—no, Naruto, don't, you idiot—they'll kill you!"

"Oi! C'mon dog-face, I'm tryin' to help you here!" Naruto mock-glared, trying to keep the concern off his face. He might be an idiot most of the time, but he'd be damned if someone tried to hurt his friends.

"No, really Naruto, I'm fine, I swear—" But it was pointless. Naruto had already gotten up and was striding quickly over to the Uchiha's table.

Said Uchiha could have seen him coming from a mile away, what with the way his hair caught the light as he walked, and his bright orange shirt acted as a beacon. But he ignored his approach, focussing instead on his knife, twirling it between his long-fingered hands, obsidian eyes locked on the shining blade. He shifted slightly, and propped one foot on the edge of the table.

It wasn't until Naruto came to a stop beside Sasuke that he even bothered to look up.

"How much does Inuzuka owe you?"

Sasuke glanced at the blond, uninterested, before sliding his gaze back to the knife. The hood obscured his face from Naruto's angle, so he took his lack of response as a sign to keep going. He reached into his back pocket—they were just regular jeans that day—and pulled out his wallet, quickly trying to figure out how much a cell phone should cost on the black market.

He gave up, and just started pulling bills out, dropping then onto the table by Sasuke's booted foot.

Ten, twenty, twenty-five, thirty, thirty-one, two, three, forty-three. That was all he had.

"Is that enough?" Naruto had to restrain himself from punching the pale bastard. He wouldn't be able to buy ramen that night, and the Uchiha wasn't even bothering to acknowledge it!

Sasuke snorted softly, and kicked the money off the table, still not looking up.

Naruto ground his teeth. _Asshole_. He bent to pick up the cash. As he was standing, the shadowed expression on Sasuke's face distracted him for a second. He hadn't seen someone look that sad, while still looking angry and blank since his own at his parents' funeral.

He lent forward, his lips brushing against a pale cheek, and he whispered:

"You are so broken."

With that he turned on his heel and left, tucking his wallet back into his pocket. There seemed to be a wave of silence across the cafeteria, as people stopped eating to watch the exchange.

Then there was a shout.

"_FUCK YOU._"

Naruto turned, startled, to see Sasuke bolting from his seat, handsome face contorted in rage.

Sasuke stepped on a table, making the girl sitting there shriek, and took a flying leap at the blonde. He tackled him, and drew his fist back.

_Crack._

_

* * *

_

Kekekekeke. I had fun torturing Kiba... Also, Tayuya rocks my socks. Like, seriously. I wanna marry her. But she's dead. TT.TT Aaaaaaand Naruto's still out of character...

More plotishnessism. Actual plot won't _really_ start 'til later, but THAT'S OKAY.

Ow. My back hurts. I did yoga today, and then I fell apart. (so saaaaad)

Review::loves::


	3. Chapter 3

YAY! REVIEWS MAKE ME HAPPY. ::easy-to-please:: Also, baking makes me happy. I just made baklava (heh, no H's) for mother's day, and it's GREAT! Crap. Now it's obvious that I wrote this so far ahead of posting it. Oh well, you had to wait anyway, so _nyeh._

**Nevermind. I'm too impatient. I had intended to post this _tomorrow_, but I'm either too lazy to wait, or too impatient...probably both.**

Story time. ENJOY.

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence (will get worse for a bit later), YAOI (later--not so much with the yaoiage yet). Naruto's emo. Sasuke's bitchy.

**Pairings**: InoNaru (minor), OroSasu (minor), NaruSasu (main, but later)...

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

The two teens were called to the principle's office almost immediately. 

Naruto slumped in his chair, nursing his sore nose, having gone through half-a-box of tissues to stem the bleeding. Luckily it wasn't broken, but the other boy packed a hell of a punch.

Sasuke sat with his lanky frame curled up, feet on the seat, black-tipped fingers drumming against his knee. His hood was still up. Naruto had been surprised at the pale boy's size, as all the black clothing served to make him look larger and more intimidating, but when Sasuke had tackled him, he noticed that he was far too light for someone of his stature.

Sasuke glanced up, feeling Naruto's gaze on him. He scowled from under his wide hood.

"The fuck do you want?"

Naruto shrugged, but leaned closer, still watching the paler boy intently. He could see deep shadows under the obsidian eyes, like Sasuke hadn't had a good night's sleep in weeks.

Principal Sarutobi entered. Naruto, leaning back, could feel the tension in the room multiply.

"Did you have to do that?" The question was aimed at Sasuke. "I've told you before, you keep this up you'll never graduate, Uchiha..."

The black-clad boy sneered, and chewed maliciously on a hangnail.

Sarutobi sighed. "Never mind. You know the drill. You're not suspended, just go home, and be _back here _in the morning," he said, running a hand over his old face.

Sasuke got up immediately, and stalked out of the room, face as expressionless as he could make it.

"Naruto, why did you get mixed up with him?" Sarutobi was sincere. "He's got no future, it's hopeless for him. You've got _talent_. I don't want to see you screw yourself over."

Naruto smiled and nodded, silent. It was weird to see someone who had supported him in everything be so dismissive and discouraged about another person. He'd thought that the principal could never find fault in someone.

Sarutobi acknowledged his agreement, and gave a tired smile. "Go home, Naruto. You've had a tough day. Get some rest, and you'll be fine."

Naruto grinned gratefully, then winced as the bruised skin of his face scrunched painfully. He thanked the old man, and skipped out the door.

Kiba was waiting for him. The two of them walked, chatting towards the front entrance. On the landing above it, Kiba grabbed a hold of Naruto's elbow, and pointed down to the doors.

There stood Sasuke, hands shoved in his pockets. His hood was pushed back a bit, so the light hit his face more evenly, and gave a clearer view of his features. Naruto noticed absently that he was surprisingly pretty. The pale boy jerked suddenly, as if he was coming out of a trance, and turned to the landing. His eyes met Naruto's, and the blond felt himself sucked into endless black depths. They stood for a second, before Sasuke glared—Naruto felt a shiver run up his spine—and spun around, stalking away through the doors.

"Hey man, I've been thinkin'," Kiba said as they pushed their bikes out of the parking lot. Because of the close proximity of their houses to school, both boys felt no need to use a car—not to mention neither of them were allowed to drive due to safety reasons of the other people in the world—and they chose to bike the way to school and back. Naruto had also been twitchy around cars since his parents had died. "Why're you going now? We haven't graduated yet, not to mention it's the middle of the week..."

Naruto grinned. "Nah, I've got all my credits. I don't need to be in school any more, so Sarutobi's letting me graduate a bit early."

Kiba got a wistful look on his face. "Man, I wish I could come with you..."

"What would you do?" Naruto hopped onto his bike, pedalling slowly.

"I'd play cricket, obviously. I'd be the championship cricket player, up on my horse, and I'd just go, _bam_!"

Naruto frowned, confused. The motion Kiba had made was something more like a golf swing that a cricket bat.

"They don't have horses in cricket. I think you're thinkin' about polo..."

Kiba grumbled, but kept the dreamy look.

"Then I'd be a champion polo player...It'd be great..."

Naruto laughed, and started pedalling faster when they came to the edge of the campus. He waved to his friend, and took off, letting the wind whip his hair around his face. He smiled, relishing the late spring sun and warmth.

_Kiba could make a good polo player..._ He thought_. But he'd suck at cricket..._

* * *

Naruto knew how his aunt would react to the thought of him going to England. Since his parents died, she had been over protective of him, making sure he never got into trouble, that he passed al his classes, everything. It was invasive, to say the least. 

At his parents funeral, a month before his tenth birthday, Tsunade had come up from behind, hugging him close, and said softly:

"Don't you worry, Naruto. This won't change a thing for you."

He knew that she was trying to comfort him, but it wasn't comforting. Since then she had made all the decisions for him, as though it would help him somehow.

He knew how she would react to the thought of him going to England to write instead of being a politician (like his father), or a lawyer, or a doctor (following in her footsteps), as she had hoped. So he hadn't told her.

"The airline called."

Naruto froze, halfway down the stairs to his room in the basement. He rotated slowly. Tsunade stood in the kitchen doorway, arms crossed, an unreadable expression on her face. Naruto grinned sheepishly, and rubbed the back of his head with his hand.

"Your flight's been changed."

Her voice was cold.

"Look, granny, I'm sorry," Naruto started, hesitantly. He dropped his backpack, and took a step towards his aunt. She wasn't actually his aunt, she was his father's cousin, but it was close enough. She was his best friend. Also, at fifty-three, she was almost old enough to be his grandmother, even if she didn't look it.

"Naruto, why did you hide this? Do you _want _to ruin my life?" There was a tremble in her voice this time. Naruto would have felt bad if he wasn't so angry. It bubbled up, and then exploded.

"Ruin _your _life? I've been doing nothing but following _your _life since I was _ten_! I don't have a future anymore, it's all _yours_, you wouldn't even care if it weren't for _your _plans!" He knew he was going a bit far, especially as he watched Tsunade's face close up even more. "I've been writing for years, and you haven't noticed. Why do you think you can stop me? This is _my _choice, _my _life, _my _responsibility! I'm _not _a little kid anymore!" He was shouting by that time, eyes flashing angrily.

The room rang with his shouts when he stopped. Naruto had heard of a deafening silence before, but the hush in the room was more than that. It was oppressive. Naruto felt like he was drowning in silence.

"You're not going to England," Tsunade said, her voice throbbing with an unidentified emotion, and disappeared into the kitchen.

Naruto stood still for a second, before snatching his backpack back up and storming down the stairs. The house, which had belonged to his parents, was a large, three-storied house on one of the many hills in Konoha. Surrounded on three sides by forest, the house was built so that the entrance was on the second floor at the top of the hill. Naruto had taken over the basement, and his room was directly in the back, with a clear view of the woods from the large windows.

He tossed his bag into the corner by his desk, and threw himself heavily onto his bed, staring at the ceiling. His blue eyes seemed to gaze past the dartboard on the white plaster ceiling, thoughtful and sombre, as he fingered the leather strap of his watch. The watch, square and outlined in black, had a yellow outline of a man dancing on a red background bordered by lime green. It had belonged to his dad. He had told Naruto at some point who had designed it, but he couldn't remember what his name was.

Tsunade had gotten him a watch too, for his tenth birthday, but he never wore it.

After a minute, he got up and pulled his notebook out of his bag, flopping again onto his bedspread, and started writing.

* * *

And we have more emo!Naruto. Guh, I really can't stand making him _not_ be a hyperactive annoying brat, but it _just wouldn't work!_ At least he's not _too_ OOC...I hope... 

Also, _plot! Yaaaay!_ Sort of. Almost. Not really, but it's still sigificant.

YAY! I _love_ **Shounen-Ai** (not just the BL, but also the sweet, sweet gal who reviewed!) YAY. But yeah, the NaruSasu is probably more NaruSasuNaru, but Naruto's still (more) dominant. 'Cause that's just his character to me...::shrug::

And to **Nadramon**, unfortunately no, OroSasu's not exactly one sided...;; It a bit dubious, but it's still there. It's not _very_ long...You'll find out a lot more about it next chapter, but (_kekeke_) it won't be all of Sasuke's history. That won't come 'till later. Also, I'm American, so I know all about bad presidents. Not sorry if I offend anyone.

**P.S. SUPERIMPORTANTNESS:** Does anyone know what Sakura's parents are named? Or have suggestions? 'Cause I can't exactly post the next chapter without them, 'casue calling them "Mrs. Haruno" and "Mr. Haruno" just sounds dumb...

HAH. I've finally found out the designer of the watch. Keith Haring, a New York Subway graffiti artist who died of AIDS in 1990. 'S my watch, if you couldn't tell. XD It's awesome.


	4. Chapter 4

So, gettin' started more in the plot! Remember, this is only _based_ on the movie, so it on't be exactly the same...but yeah. For one thing, I'm screwing Sasuke up so much more than his movie-twin. But it works. :D

**Disclaimer**: Not minez.

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence (will get worse for a bit later), YAOI IN THIS CHAPTER. Orochimaru (he deserves his own warning). Mentions of underaged sex.

**Pairings**: OroSasu (_not so minor here_), InoNaru (minor),NaruSasu (main, but later)...

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

Like Naruto, Sasuke went home after leaving the school too. He kicked open the door of the small apartment, wrinkling his nose at the sharp stench of urine continually emitting from the carpet. As usual, he had to resist the urge to take off his shoes at the front door, as the inside of the apartment was almost as bad as outside, and couldn't possibly get any dirtier. He snorted, disgusted, at the flat. Dirty dishes covered the tiny table, piled high in the sink and on the counter, as well as empty containers of whatever food they had.

Haruno Masaru, his foster mom sat on the couch watching television.

"Oi, is there any food left?" Sasuke asked, picking through the boxes on the table. There were a few Cheerios left, but he would save them for Sakura later. He pulled open the refrigerator. There was nothing but some bad eggs and an old carton of milk. When he got no answer, he shut the fridge door and turned. "I said: is there any food left?"

The red haired woman waved absently, not tearing her eyes away from the screen.

With a snarl, Sasuke stalked to the T.V. and turned it off. He spun towards the couch, and threw an empty packet of mac-and-cheese at her. "What the hell have you been doing all day? What the fuck do you _do _besides sit on your ass that makes you unable to cook a _fucking meal?!_"

The door opened behind him. It was Haruno Yashin, coming back from his day job. Masaru was getting flustered, and quite ready to start a shouting match, when the larger man spoke up. Sasuke froze, stiffened, and didn't turn to face him.

"It'll be good for you to start doing something during the day. You could at least cook some food before everyone gets home," he said, pulling off his light jacket. He used to be a police, but after an incident that needn't be talked about, he was demoted to security guard at a hotel.

Masaru grumbled, and cast a dirty look at Sasuke, before she stomped off into the kitchen. Sasuke followed her and grabbed an almost empty jar of peanut butter and one of the stale bagels, before slipping through a side door to his room that he shared with his foster sister.

"_Sasuke-kun!_"

Sasuke let himself smile slightly at the greeting. Once Sakura had found out about Sasuke's Japanese roots, she had taken it upon herself to make him feel as much at home as possible. It didn't work very well, but it was a sweet thing for the seven year old to do.

Sasuke raised a hand and wiggled his fingers in greeting to the strawberry-blond girl **(1)**. Sakura was sitting on the floor, playing with a large remote-controlled airplane. Ever since Sasuke had come into the Haruno family, Sakura had started attempting to be more like him, and thus had started collecting more boy-ish toys. Her endeavours weren't successful, as she was far too bouncy and cheerful, with jade green eyes, an almost unnatural hair colour, and a perpetual smile on her face, to reflect the broody pale teenager. Also, despite her insistence that it was not, her favourite colour was pink, as shown in her pale pink skirt. Her light green t-shirt was a size too big for her, but she looked adorable anyway.

Sasuke kicked off his shoes, sitting on his creaky bed, and reached into his messenger bag to pull out a length of red ribbon. He was far too sentimental when it came to Sakura, but the child had grown on him, and he went to great lengths to please her. Using his pocket knife, he scrapped the last bits of peanut butter out of the jar and spread it unevenly on the bagel, cutting it in half and licking the knife clean before he closed it. Sasuke motioned to Sakura, and the young girl bounced from the floor to sit in front of him. He handed her the peanut-butter-bagel, which she accepted gratefully, and turned her around so that her back was to him.

His long fingers raked through her long strawberry-blonde hair, and she sighed in bliss at the sensation. Using his fingers to comb her hair, Sasuke listened absently as she prattled on about her day. He was just tying her hair back with the red ribbon—which he had stolen from an art room before he had left campus—when Sakura voiced a question.

"Hey Sasuke-kun, can I go on the roof and play with my airplane?"

Sasuke bopped her gently on the head. "No, it's too dangerous. You could get hurt playing there. I'll take you to the park soon." He glanced at the clock, and shifted his foster sister away from his lap so he could put his shoes back on. He hadn't planned to go out, but he might as well, as there was nothing to do but spend time with Sakura in the apartment, and she needed to get more sleep.

"Today?" Sakura's voice was slightly dull, as though she had asked the question several times before.

Sasuke hesitated, remembering his own elder brother, then mentally shook his head, shoving the memory down. "Soon."

Sakura turned on her knees on the bed, picking at her skirt. "Are you going out?"

The boy looked up and nodded, silent.

"Will you come home tonight?"

Sasuke paused again, and said, "I'll be back soon."

Sakura grinned shyly, before perking up. "And then will you take me to the park?" she asked, bouncing slightly. "And if I'm asleep before you come home, can you bring me another ribbon tomorrow?" She looked so excited.

Sasuke gave a little half smile at her enthusiasm, and leaned over to look her in the eye.

"I'll bring you something even better," he said.

She smiled happily at him, and clambered down to the floor, where she resumed her playing. Sasuke tugged lightly on a lock of hair held back by the ribbon as he left.

Then he went to Orochimaru's.

Orochimaru used to work with a large gang self-named Sound, but after he had been arrested for burglarizing a notoriously rich family the gang had disbanded. Tayuya and Sakon had been in it, as had another kid from Konoha, but they had had a falling out at some time, and were more likely to kill each other than look at each other. When they passed in the halls, Tayuya would call Kidomaru names about every aspect in his life—usually comparing him to some sort of nasty bug—and Sakon would stick to simpler insults about his heritage and sexuality.

Sasuke had met Orochimaru the summer he turned thirteen–the year _it_ happened–after beating the shit out of Kabuto, Orochimaru's subordinate, for trying to grope him in the supermarket. The man had promised to deal with Kabuto, complimented him on his round-house kick, and asked—quite innocently—if he might join him for dinner. Sasuke said yes, and they had been fucking ever since.

The pale boy wasn't sure exactly how old Orochimaru actually was, but he was certainly older than the twenty-six he claimed to be. Luckily for Orochimaru, after Sasuke had turned sixteen almost two years ago there were no actual laws against their unconventional relationship. **(2)** Sasuke was very aware of the unethicalness of it, and was mildly disgusted by himself, but Orochimaru had promised to keep him safe, make him stronger, and so the teen stayed with him. He was handsome in an exotic kind of way, with a thin, pointed face, pale skin, and a long sheet of pitch-black hair. His eyes were an abnormal golden colour, and the pupils were somewhat long and narrow, like a cat's.

Orochimaru was talking on the phone when Sasuke showed up. Despite the time that Sasuke had gotten out of school, it was nearly seven o'clock in the evening when he got to the older man's place.

Orochimaru gave a wide grin at the sight of the younger boy, and quickly said good-bye to the person on the phone. He walked over, still grinning. One of the first things that Sasuke had noticed about the other man was the way he moved. It was a graceful, swaying gait: Orochimaru seemed to walk on the sides of his feet, making his body shift elegantly, much like a dancer. Sasuke had always been reminded of a snake charmer. Or maybe just a snake.

"Sasuke, how nice of you to come. I thought you weren't coming until later..." Orochimaru murmured, his voice deep and slightly gravelly. As he came close, his hand brushed back Sasuke's hood and cupped the back of his neck. His other hand wrapped around Sasuke's waist, pressing firmly on the small of his back, pulling him in close. Their bodies were flush against each other.

The teenager had to tip his head back in order to look Orochimaru in the eye, but there was no need for eye contact as the older man's face descended. The hand on his neck moved to thread strong fingers into his hair, and then the man's full, pale lips met his.

Sasuke didn't have to think for a good long time.

* * *

It was just before 11:50 when Orochimaru decided on the car he wanted. A sleek, silver Porsche parked outside a night club, apparently left by a tourist judging from the license plate. Sasuke couldn't understand why someone could possibly be that dumb–both to choose _Konoha_ as their vacation spot, as well as to leave such an expensive car on the street. Orochimaru was just gleeful, and left it at that.

Then Sasuke got distracted.

Across the street and one store down was an elaborate jewelry store, closed up for the night. In the front window there was a rack of necklaces, rings, bracelets, and other precious ornaments that probably cost more than the car Orochimaru was trying to unlock. But it was really the girl in the picture that caught Sasuke's attention.

She looked like Sakura. She was older of course, older than Sasuke, and her hair was a shade darker, and her eyes a bit browner, but her features were almost identical. Her nose turned up at the end slightly, much like Sakura's, though in a more elegant, refined way. Her forehead was also smaller, but other than that she could have been Sakura's older sister.

Sasuke was walking towards the store before he noticed his feet move. He didn't pay attention to Orochimaru's shout to not do it, nor to the brief wail of the car siren before the man cut it off. All he could think about was what if Sakura was that girl. She'd be happy that way.

His arm raised, and the crowbar clenched in his hand smashed through the glass. The wild blaring alarm jerked Sasuke out of his stupor, and he reached into the broken case quickly, grabbing as much stuff as he could, including one particular piece–a (relatively) simple necklace with a single pendant of a beautiful teardrop Padparadscha sapphire set in gold. **(3)**

As he claimed his prize, Orochimaru's swearing caught his attention, and he abandoned the store. He tore across the street, wrenching open the door of the stolen car, and clambering in even as Orochimaru was pulling away. His fingers, covered in leather gloves, grasped the seized jewelry tightly, and he gave a breathless laugh that no one would ever hear at school.

"You're out of control," Orochimaru hissed, glancing over at the boy. "You know I'm still on fucking probation." He almost forgot his ire at the way that the pale boy's face had lit up with adrenalin, but then the smile dropped off of Sasuke's face, to be replaced by the oh-so-familiar smirk.

"Come on, it was fun, Orochimaru, and you know it," he said, and pulled a bag out of one of his pockets. He deposited the jewelry into the bag, and turned in his seat to face Orochimaru, who was still glancing at him out of the corner of his eye. "We weren't caught," he said, dropping his voice to a husky whisper, knowing it would distract the man from his anger, "and–if you want–I could make it up to you..."

Orochimaru swore again, shaking his head, and took him up on his offer anyway.

* * *

**(1)** She's seven. No matter how much she could insist that her hair is natural, this is AU, and real(ish) world, so there's no way she'll have pick hair. I picked the colour closest though, 'cause I don't think she would be a redhead... Also, I really like Sakura, and I couldn't find anyone else to fit into that role, so I shrunk her and made her adorable. XD

**(2)** I'm from Maryland, and the law here is that a relationship between anyone under 16 and over 18 is considered statutory rape. This is _without_ the consent of the parents, so it's a bit sketchy anyway. Therefore, because Sasuke was 13, it's considered rape here... –.–

**(3) **This is not necessary, but the Padparadscha sapphire is the _prettiest_ thing I've ever seen! Google it, 'cause it's just a beautiful stone. It's would never be put in a window, but this is my story, so shaddap.

Masaru (thankyou **Shounen-Ai**!) means 'intellegent' or 'to surpass'. I used it 'casue I sort of wanted to imply how things have gone wrong in their family.

Yashin means 'treachery'. Or so the InterWeb tells me. _(gek, don't know if that's right)_.

* * *

W00t. Hints at history, Sasuke-angst. ::loves::

Sasuke's really kinda crazy here, isn't he? But whatever.

Tell me what you think!


	5. Chapter 5

Hey look! It's Friday! Yaaaaaay, Friday::parties:: Earlier I was reading Uchihacest and pretending to be busy, when I thought: _Huh, I wonder what I should do now..._ absently going to my account and staring at the computer screen. Then I was like: _...Duuurrrrhhhh. FRIDAY._

**Disclaimer**: If only. But no. All not mine, no matter how much I wish it.

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence (will get worse for a bit later), uber-angst, vague references to self-harm. This chapter's weird and short and dumb, but important anyway. Yah.

**Pairings**: itsy-bits of NaruSasu fluff here. InoNaru, OroSasu, more NasuSasuNaru later.

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

Naruto had another dream that night. It was more of a memory than a dream, and once he had woken up he knew it was because of his run-in with Sasuke, but it still made his breath run too fast and his skin break out into cold sweat. 

There was something that not many people knew about his past, before middle school, before his parents had died. Before Sasuke had changed. He tried his hardest to avoid thinking about it, because it never did any good, and only made him more and more insecure, though he didn't really know why, considering it wasn't his problem, but it did anyway.

The playground had always been the most exciting place in the world for a lower-schooler, until of course you were too mature and jaded as a fifth-grader, but when Naruto was in second grade, it was the best thing ever. In the dream, the sky was kinda cloudy, but the air was warm, and Naruto knew exactly what memory it was as soon as he saw Sasuke off to the side all alone.

It was parents visiting day. He remembered it too well, because that was the first time he had seen Sasuke cry, as well as the last time.

Naruto–dream-Naruto, not real Naruto–was only seven, as was Sasuke. But Dream-Naruto was invisible, just like all the other Dream-Narutos of late. He stood by his parents as they talked and joked and laughed and never paid any attention to him. He knew that that wasn't how it had happened, because he remembered pulling his father over to the swing-set, and playing with his mother on the pirate-ship that wasn't actually a pirate ship, but there was no other name for it.

But the real point of the memory was Sasuke, and how that day–parent's visiting day–Sasuke's whole family had died.

First there was a phone call. Then there were police. Later there was the news about the fire and how it had killed all sixteen people (mother, father, three uncles, two aunts, two grandmothers, one grandfather, two neighbours, and three cousins) in the house. Even later than that there was the news about how the brother (also killed in the fire) had started it. Arson, gone out of control.

But when Sasuke stood there by the tether-ball pole, all by himself, he didn't know about it. All he knew was that his parents had promised to come and hadn't.

But that wasn't the secret. Everyone knew about that.

It was the scene in the bathroom, later, after the call came but before the police, when Naruto had found Sasuke crying that was secret. He remembered how he had hugged the boy, letting him cry on his shoulder, squeezing tight enough to hurt, but Sasuke didn't care, and had clung to him with equal fervour.

Seven years old is awfully young to loose everything.

(After that day, even though Sasuke had stopped smiling, there was something of a grateful friendship between the two boys. They showed it by trying to best each other in everything there was to do–Sasuke usually won–but it was still there, until they started high-school.)

What was even more different in the dream, was that when Naruto reached the part with the bathroom, he had walked in and Sasuke had kept crying. He cried and cried, and nothing Naruto could do could help because Sasuke couldn't see him–couldn't hear him.

And then there was a time-shift that wasn't actually a time-shift, because the only thing that happened was that they had gotten older–eighth grade maybe–and Naruto didn't remember seeing Sasuke like that since that one day.

Sasuke still sat on the floor, curled in a ball, sobbing, and Naruto was still invisible, even though his clothes were bright and his voice was loud.

The sobs echoed through the bathroom, loud, heart-wrenching, broken. It hurt to listen to them. Naruto could do nothing but watch as Sasuke lay crumpled on the floor.

It was when Sasuke pulled out the knife that Naruto screamed and tried his hardest to be seen.

But he woke up before he could stop the pale boy.

* * *

GAH. IT'S SO _SHORT._ ::hates self:: Sorry 'bout the non-update on Tuesday, I was on a trip with my class. It kind of sucked. I got so sunburned that it's not even funny. Also, a plant tried to eat me, and I got allergic reactions to the Mutant-Mosquitos-From-Hell bites. And then I pulled a muscle in my leg. And it was really fucking cold at night in our pathetic little tent. 

I was awkward about killing off Itachi, but Sasuke's so screwed up anyway, I figured it would be _far_ too complicated to have him still alive. But I still had him kill the rest of the family. XD

Anyway, I LOVE MY REVIEWERS. (it took me like ten tries to spell that...O.o) YOU ALL ROCK _SO HARD._ **W00t**!

And (_dunno why I didn't answer this earlier...) _yes, **yanagiblossoms**, it is an _awesome _movie. Which I have to see again (you should too!) Or else I won't remember what comes next... ;;


	6. Chapter 6

Grr. FF hates me. Anyway, sorry that this is really short, but I've gotten sick. My brain just doesn't work, and I've run out of pre-written chapters. n.n;; Also, now that the movie's out of theatres, I can't go and check the facts, so I'm goin' blind from now on, so it probably won't be as close to the movie as it has been. Not that it has been all that close anyway...XD

**Disclaimer**: Not mine.

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence (will get worse later), MINOR YAOI in this chapter. Orochimaru...Grumpy!Sasuke...

**Pairings**: OroSasu (minor), InoNaru (minor),NaruSasu (main, but later)...

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

Sasuke was up and mostly dressed by the time Orochimaru stirred. The teen was sitting on the side of the bed, shirtless, lacing up one of his heavy boots, when the mattress shifted, and he felt the older man's breath against his neck. A long tongue darted out, and Sasuke let his head fall to the side as Orochimaru traced a purpling hickey on the side of his throat. 

Then he pushed the man away and leaned down to finish lacing his boots. He was wearing new pants, as he always brought an extra pair to Orochimaru's in case he spent the night, but his hoodie was the same, and when he slipped his shirt over his head it was also high-collared, though a dark blue in colour. Orochimaru caught his hand once he was fully dressed, ignoring the wince Sasuke made at the tight grip, and dragged him down for a lingering kiss.

The man reached out, cupping the back of his head, and pulled him closer, smoothly sliding his tongue into the younger boy's mouth, deepening the kiss. Sasuke shifted closer for a second, kissing back, before bringing a hand up to Orochimaru's naked chest and pushing him away.

"I gotta go to school..."

Orochimaru grunted, annoyed, but let Sasuke go, and watched appreciatively as the boy bent to gather his old clothes.

He wasn't so appreciative when Sasuke also picked up the bag from last night, tucking it into his satchel.

"The hell are you doing? You can't take that to school with you, you'd get caught!" He said, sitting up straighter.

Sasuke turned, gazing irritably at the other. "And what would _you_ do with it? Sell it? You _can't_, you're on _probation._ I'm taking it to school with me."

As he walked out the door, Orochimaru realized for the first time just how far out of his control Sasuke was. Hell, Sasuke was even too far out of his own control. For the first time, Orochimaru felt regret for not noticing sooner.

And then he got angry. He threw himself out of bed and stormed to the phone. He had a call to make.

* * *

Kiba was watching when Sasuke shoved all his stuff into his locker. He had stepped close, blocking the sight of any on-lookers, before pulling several things, as well as the bag of jewelry, out, shoving them in and closing the locker with a bang. 

–

Kiba was watching when the police came, when they talked to the principal, when they marched through the corridors. They stopped at a locker, and one man stepped forward with a pair of metal cutters, to remove the lock from that specific locker.

–

Kiba was watching when they opened the locker and found the stolen jewelry, and the cell phones, and the iPods, and the envelope of money.

–

Kiba was watching when they walked Uchiha Sasuke out of the building in handcuffs and shoved him roughly into the back of the police car. Sasuke looked arrogant and calm, almost indifferent to the situation.

–

Kiba was watching when Sasuke locked eyes with him–out of all the other students watching–and his face was suddenly not tranquil at all. Suddenly, his face was angry, resentful, betrayed–but just for a second. Then the door closed, and the car drove away.

* * *

Orochimaru was working in the shop, focused on attempting to get the blood red Ferrari to run again, when the phone rang. 

He pulled his head out from under the hood and glared at the phone. Kabuto was out–he was a med student and was just about to earn his degree, so finals were bearing down on the bespectacled young man–so Orochimaru wiped his hands on his already dirty coveralls and stalked over to the phone. His hair was drawn back into a high ponytail so it wouldn't get dirty, and smudge or two of filth decorated his thin face. He pulled out a rag as he went, attempting to get more grease off his hands.

He picked up the phone, balancing it between his shoulder and his ear as he scrubbed at his pale hands.

"Manda's Auto Shop, Orochimaru speaking. How can I help you?" He hated being polite to people. It was one of the reasons that he was still on probation.

"_Hey, it's me."_

Orochimaru stiffened, his heart pierced by a sensation of almost-guilt. It wasn't guilt, but it was something like it.

"_I know who ratted me out."_

The tall man held his breath. Sasuke was small, and young, and surprisingly innocent for everything he had seen in his lifetime, but he was _dangerous._

"Really?"

"_Yeah. Don't worry about it. I'll deal with it."_

Sasuke hung up, and the dial tone buzzed in Orochimaru's ear. Sasuke obviously thought that someone else was responsible for turning him in, and while the older man was relieved by the fact that he was _not_ the one Sasuke directed his wrath towards, he felt pity for the poor bastard that _did_ receive the teen's ire.

* * *

Sasuke walked quickly out of the police building, glowering at one of the younger cops as her eyes roamed his figure. He had been in a bad mood since the police came, but the day had just gotten worse. He was surprised that his foster father could pay the bail–even though it wasn't _too_ expensive. He would however, have to work it off, and repay Yashin for _"all the goddamned effort we put into clothing you and feeding you!"_ He'd hate the guy if he didn't loath him already. 

He shoved his hands into his pockets, and made his way down the sidewalk toward the school.

Inuzuka would probably still be there.

* * *

So yeah, super short. Sorry. Also, _CLIFF-HANGER! _AHAHAHAHAHAHA. 

BUT! I've gotten my term-paper back (the one that owned my ass for the past few weeks) and I got a PERFECT SCORE! Or...I would have, if my teacher hadn't been such a stingy jerk. But whatever. He's a _really_ hard grader, so I'm SO PROUD OF MYSELF! (squeals)

Okay. Nap time. I'll stop abusing caps-lock now.

Review!


	7. Chapter 7

Gnagh. Sorry this is late. I have no actual excuse, but SCHOOL'S OUT NOW! I DON'T HAVE TO GO TO SCHOOL ANY MOOORRREEEE!!! I'm so happy. I might actually be able to update on time now. BUT. **I will not be here from the 13th to the 21st. I'm going to the West Coast. No updates will occur at that time, unless I can get a hold of my grandparent's computer.** Which will probably not happen...

**Disclaimer**: Nein.

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence (will get worse for a bit later). Pretty tame, for the most part. Kiba torture. Delvage into PlotLand.

**Pairings**: **InoNaru** (almost-smexy scene), OroSasu (minor), more NasuSasuNaru later.

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

"Hey, Uzumaki." 

Naruto looked up from his computer to Kiba, who lounged across his bed staring at the mutilated dartboard on the ceiling.

"Hmm?"

It was early evening. The air had gotten hot and humid, and both teenagers refused to go out into the suffocating heat. The friends had found refuge inside Naruto's basement lair, and were probably never going to leave until it had dropped at least ten degrees.

"What's happened to your flight? I thought you were supposed to leave by now..." Kiba's brain deteriorated as the temperature went up, so logic and brain-power were difficult for him to manage properly.

"It was changed," Naruto said, leaning back in his chair. He had been typing up a number of his poems, trying to store all of them electronically before he left. "I'm not leaving until like midnight."

"How are you paying for all this?" Kiba asked, flipping over to rest on his stomach, propped up by his elbows. "I mean, your aunt doesn't want you to go, right?"

Naruto grinned widely, his cheeks scrunching up. "I've been saving up. C'mere."

He got up and motioned for Kiba to join him at the book case. Kiba groaned and clambered up, stumbling lazily over to the bookshelf and peering over the blonde's shoulder.

Naruto reached up and pulled out an old Japanese mythology book. He flipped it open to the legend of the Nine-Tailed Fox, and showed Kiba a section of the book that had been cut out. Kiba whistled. A great deal of money was stuffed in the hole in the pages.

"The program also sent me money to pay for my ticket, so I'm covered there too. 'S all good!" Naruto winked.

Kiba checked the time. "Crap. I gotta go home and get ready. Hyuuga's party tonight! You gonna go? 'Cause you should. It'll be great." He gave Naruto a thumbs-up.

Naruto shrugged. "Meh. Guess so. Haven't got anything else to do tonight..."

The brunette whooped. "Yeah! Now you can help me win over Hinata!"

* * *

Naruto spent quite a lot of time thinking things over after Kiba left. He fingered the watch his aunt had given to him, admiring the sleek silver edge and smooth leather strap. Engraved in the back of the watch were the words: 

"_To Naruto:_

_For overcoming everything to fulfil your goals._

_Your father would be proud._

_Love, Tsunade."_

Naruto had never worn it. He also knew that he would forget it if he ignored it right then, but his bags were hidden under his bed and he was too lazy to get them back out to put it in them.

He shrugged, changed his clothes, and tucked the watch into his pocket.

* * *

Sasuke and his gang caught Kiba while he was on his way to the Hyuuga's party. 

"Y'know, Inuzuka, there's something very rude about turning people you don't know in to the police. It's not very good for building healthy relationships," Sasuke said, leaning close to Kiba's deathly pale face. Sakon's large hands held the tattooed brunette against the wall firmly, and Kiba could feel the other teen's breath against his cheek. "You could have waited at least until the second date. More traditional, you see..."

Sasuke reached into his pants pocket, and pulled out his knife again. Tayuya, who stood behind the pale boy looking menacing, had a knife too; hers was almost eight inches long and wickedly serrated. If Kiba had actually done what the Uchiha was accusing him of, he probably would have been even more terrified than he was. Not that that was exactly saying much, because already he felt like shitting his pants and passing out.

Sasuke growled, and gently, like a lovers caress, only more dangerous and less arousing (unless you were into that), dragged the flat side of his knife along Kiba's tattooed cheek. He didn't press, didn't cut the skin, and Kiba could barely feel the icy cold blade on his face it was so light–but he knew it was there.

"You've got some nerve, fucking with me. I oughta cut your tongue out for waggin' too much."

Kiba attempted to regain his control, which seemed to have fled the country and was possibly cowering behind some Tibetan zen monk. He didn't do a very good job of coaxing it back.

"L-look, I've got n-no idea w-what you'r-re talkin' ab-bout... I s-swear, I-I didn't d-do anything!" he stammered, shaking. "I didn't c-call the p-p-police, a-an' I d-didn't turn you in o-or nothin'!"

Sakon leaned closer, and Kiba could smell his breath. He'd been drinking. And probably hadn't brushed his teeth in days.

"Lying piece-a-shit! Shut the fuck up, an' start talking!"

Tayuya kicked him hard in the knee, and Sasuke had to refrain from rolling his eyes, because that would _definitely_ send the wrong message.

"Okay then," Sasuke said, his obsidian eyes boring into Kiba's frantic brown ones. "Let's say you're _not_ lying. You didn't call. Then–" he leaned back, taking in the dog-lover's shaking figure, "who did?"

Kiba froze. He couldn't say anything. Or rather, nothing he could say would help him. He didn't know, and if he said that, Sasuke would probably break his fingers or something. At the very least, Sakon would. He had no alternative, no plan B. He hadn't thought he'd have needed one, actually. Some optimistic bone in his body had hoped against hope that if he denied it, Sasuke would leave him alone. But Kiba–unfortunately–lived in the real world.

He swallowed.

"I-I'm not...don't hurt me o-or anything," his voice shook, "but I'm s-sure– I-I thi-think it was–"

* * *

Naruto checked his watch for the fourth time and grumbled. It had been three minutes since he'd last checked his watch, and Kiba still hadn't shown up. 

Naruto stood outside the Hyuuga's–for lack of a better word–mansion, waiting for his friend. The air had cooled down considerably since the sun sank below the horizon, so Naruto wore a dark orange sweater over his t-shirt and black trousers. His fingers brushed against his pocket, where the silver Rolex was. Guilt had been plaguing him for no reason for quite some time, and he couldn't tell if having the watch helped that feeling or made it worse.

He didn't know if he wanted to go to London or not. Tsunade's face kept forcing its way to the front of his mind–almost betrayed. He shook his head. His aunt didn't feel anything. She was so absorbed in her own perfect life that she couldn't be bothered to feel anything.

But still.

He wouldn't have any friends in London. Kiba wouldn't be there. Nor would Chouji or Shikamaru, or Hinata. Neji, in all his pompous rich-boy prickness wouldn't be there. The joy of being a great writer and having such an amazing opportunity was wearing off in the face of how damn lonely he'd be. Sasuke wouldn't be there, but that was probably a good thing, all things considered.

Plus, all the writers in London were probably totally emo or too stuck-up to be any good. That was the problem with those weird British people. (Naruto pointedly ignored the fact that _everyone_ was like that.)

Naruto checked his watch again. It was 9 o'clock. He glanced out at the dark road, still looking for Kiba, and kicked a pebble on the ground impatiently. Then he turned around and followed a stream of other high schoolers into the Hyuuga's grand house.

The music was loud and obnoxious. Neji had obviously not picked it. Neither had Hinata, if the amount of swearing was anything to go by. It pounded through the walls, making the floor vibrate and rumble. People shouted over the music, made out in dark corners, and basically infected the entirety of the house.

Naruto hated it.

He loved parties. Really, he did. He liked music _(not rap, it had no dance beat)_, and he liked company _(but only when they were _not_ drunk off their asses)_, and on a general note, he liked booze too _(but not enough to get him completely wasted. A simple buzz was enough, really)._ This party, with its booze, sex, bad music, and waster party-goers was not exactly Naruto's idea of a good time.

But he had to live with it, or he'd never live it down.

Naruto sat at a table overlooking the pool, idly spinning the Lazy Susan. He wasn't sure why the Hyuuga's had a Lazy Susan, but they did, and so he wouldn't doubt them and their activeness. He took a sip of his Coke, deciding that getting drunk before he left the country would, in fact, be a bad idea.

That's where Ino found him.

"Hey!" she shouted cheerily, crossing the room to him. Her navy blue dress was short and shimmery, clinging to her curves and draping low across her chest. Her hair was down and loose, falling like a sheet of gold down her back and swaying as she walked. "You came! I'm so happy!" She slid onto the bench-like seat next to him, pressing herself against his side. "I thought you were too busy to come."

Naruto glanced at her, and made his decision.

"You wanna go to London?"

Ino blinked. Then she gaped, and her sky blue eyes widened.

"What do you mean?"

Naruto pulled out the boarding pass and the brochure. "Flight leaves at one a.m., if you wanna go." He grinned.

* * *

When they had found an empty room, Ino had felt no reservations in shoving him down onto the bed, with little thought as to whoever's bed it actually was. She kissed him deep, and pressed her body against his, straddling him so that her dress rode up over her smooth thighs. 

She pulled back and grinned, slightly drunk, delicate hands reaching for Naruto's belt. She ran her hands over his hips, and paused, confused when she encountered the bulge of the watch, half fallen out of his pocket.

Sitting up, Ino pushed back her hair, and looked at the watch, admiring its make.

"Nice watch. Why do you have two? If you've got a watch as nice as this, why are you still wearing _that_ ratty ol' thing?"

Naruto took the watch from her, staring at it. "My dad gave me that watch," he said, referring to the watch still adorning his wrist.

Ino shrugged, uncaring. "Wouldn't your dad want you to wear a better watch?"

Naruto looked contemplative, and slowly sat up, moving Ino off of him so that he could get off the bed. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the London writing class brochure, tossing it in Ino's lap.

He nodded to her.

"Have fun in London."

* * *

Someone had spiked his drink, he was sure of it. Otherwise it wouldn't be so hard to walk down the line in the middle of the road. He kept veering off to the left, and the left wasn't really much more exciting than the right side, so it couldn't be some sort of subconscious desire to explore the wonders of the left side of the road. 

Naruto definitely felt drunk, at least a little bit.

He wove across the road, arms out to the sides, breathing in the cool night air. It wasn't any warmer than before–if anything it was colder–but he rolled up his sleeves, convinced that it would help cool off his body.

He resisted the urge to sing as loudly as possible. Or play the 'Penis Game' with himself. That's what he usually did when he was bored, alone, or drunk. Or all three.

A rumble alerted him of a car driving behind him. Naruto veered to the left again, before deciding the right would actually be better, and walked purposefully to the side that would best get him squashed.

The car rumbled again, but made no move to pass him. He wavered a bit more, tripping over his feet, and used one arm to gesture wildly for the car to pass him.

The car's engine growled, and Naruto suddenly felt distinctly nervous. He looked back, and saw the old grey car thrumming along right behind him, like a crouching panther awaiting the opportune moment.

Naruto tripped unsteadily around the bend, when the car roared to life, and started after him. He looked back again and felt fear grip him as his feet took off in a mad attempt to get himself out of the way.

But he couldn't out run a car.

It chased him off the road, clipping his hip with one of the side mirrors, and scraped against a tree at the edge of the forest that surrounded Konoha.

Naruto went flying into a ditch, and, shoving himself up, looked as well as he could at his attackers, being blinded by the glare of the headlights.

His head hurt so much.

* * *

**W00t!** Chapter is done, PLOT IS FULL STEAM AHEAD. This chapter was almost 6 pages! Yaaay. I can't write car-chase scenes. 

It's 2:31 a.m. here. I'm sleepy.

Review::heart::


	8. Chapter 8

**General note to the Public: **EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEerfzlshgfgjdfjgedflgj!!!!! YOU ALL ROCK SO MUCH. I LOVE YOU ALL. This was hard to write. I can't write fight/beatsomeoneup scenes...so, you'll have to forgive me. Also, my finger's jammed and is curently splinted to another one of my fingers, so I typed most of this chapter with my left hand and the index finger of my right one. So, sorry about errors...;;

Anyway, UBC rocks, I wanna go there for college. My grandparents have been married for 50 (o.o) years, and...nothing else is new. Oh, and you should all read Caleb Carr's books, and Neil Gaiman's books, and Terry Pratchette(spwtf?)'s books, aaaaaaand...Nick Hornby's **A Long Way Down**. Yeah. Do that. FYI, only read Carr's books if you like mysteries, psychology, and gore.

**Disclaimer**: Not minez.

**Warnings**: Language, (crappy) VIOLENCE. Right here. This chapter. Yah.

**Pairings**: OroSasu (minor), InoNaru (minor),NaruSasu (main, but later)...

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

Kiba hadn't meant to do it. It was a reaction. Instinct. Blame another person before you can be blamed. Shift the attention so that you might escape. Avert focus and you might survive another few days. Naruto was his best friend, and because of that... 

His name was the first one he thought of.

"Watch."

Kiba couldn't watch.

"_Watch._" There was a knife against his neck.

Kiba watched.

He watched his best friend, his longest friend, get...

It was all his fault.

* * *

Naruto swore loudly, trying to push himself up. His hip hurt like a bitch and his leg was throbbing painfully, but he shoved himself to his feet, squinting into the headlights to see his attackers. 

There were two of them, silhouetted against the light, one tall and stick-like, the other shorter and curvier. The shorter one had long, straight hair that rippled as it walked–stomped rather–down the grass into the ditch to grab him by the shirt front.

"Hallo, fucker," said Tayuya, almost pleasantly, and kneed him in the stomach.

Naruto's breath _wooshed_ out of his lungs, leaving him gasping. He doubled over, coughing and dazed. Sakon reached down as well, grabbing him by the hair and pulling him up. Naruto shouted, and swore some more, flailing at the lavender-haired boy, landing a solid punch on the others cheek, forcing him to release him.

"What the _fuck_ do you want?!" Naruto snarled, stumbling slightly. He looked between the two, still squinting, trying to make sense of the situation. Tayuya stepped up, her boots thumping on the ground.

The blond took a tremulous step back, his foot slipping slightly on the damp ground. There was a small creek flowing down from the forest, thin and trickling, that splashed and burbled across rocks and forged a path underneath the road. Naruto was taken by surprise when Sakon crept up behind him and grabbed his arms, holding then in a death grip behind his back. He shouted, struggling to get free, and had no time to react when Tayuya threw a punch to his face. Sakon let go abruptly, and Naruto dropped heavily to the ground, hand clutching his cheek.

Then the two seniors fell on him like vengeance.

Tayuya concentrated on his back, heavy, painful kicks making him curl as best he could to protect his kidneys. But no matter which way he twisted, Sakon struck as well, landing painful kicks to his stomach and chest.

Naruto could feel his ribs breaking, his left arm fracture, his head pound. A kick to the face sent him flying to his back, and he had to spit out a broken tooth. Blood welled up in his mouth, and he choked to swallow it back down.

"Stop."

And the blows did, the attackers backing off as their leader stepped out of the car.

Sasuke held the back of Kiba's neck, directing him, forcing him to keep his eyes on his bleeding best friend. The Uchiha's face was completely shadowed, but the smooth tenor of his voice was easily recognizable, and Naruto looked up painfully as the taller black-haired boy stepped up.

Tayuya took control of Kiba when Sasuke let him go.

"You're a right bastard, aren't you? Are you happy now?" Sasuke asked, crouching down beside Naruto as he tried to push himself up, clutching his left arm close to his chest. "Was that what you wanted?" Naruto pushed himself onto all-fours, glaring into obsidian eyes. "Did it give you a _thrill?_" At the emphasis, Sasuke punched the blond hard in the face, and Naruto fell again heavily. He howled as he landed on his broken arm, and scrambled back up. Sasuke leaned closer as Naruto moved his jaw, checking that it wasn't dislocated or anything.

"_Who's the broken one now?"_

Naruto laughed, and licked his split lip, whispering back, _"You are."_

Sasuke looked like he'd been slapped. Then his eyes flashed with anger–they looked almost red in the headlights–and he stood up abruptly. He drew his foot back, Naruto's eyes widened at the sight of the painful-looking combat boots, and kicked, his foot connecting soundly with Naruto's jaw.

The blond fell backwards, off the tiny hill, into the stream. His head hit against the rocks with a _CRACK_ and his neck twisted at a painful angle.

He didn't move.

Sakon crept forward and swore. "Fucking _hell_, Uchiha!" He looked back at his leader, who stood frozen. "You _killed_ him!"

"No..."

Sasuke leapt down, splashing into the stream beside the still figure. "No, he's not...he can't..." He touched the tanned face, tracing a set of scratches on his cheek caused by his head connecting to the rock.

He rose, staring down, eyes widened. His hands shook. He whispered, almost inaudibly, "Shit."

"Sasuke!" Tayuya called. She looked scared, just a bit. "What the fuck are you going to fucking do?"

Sasuke shook his head, like he was trying to wake up from a bad dream. "We're going to get rid of the body."

* * *

Kiba had to help. Kiba didn't want to help, but he had to. He had been shaking since Sasuke had dragged him out of the car, but when he was directed to grab hold of his dead friend's legs, his fingers went numb and he just didn't feel anything. 

The four of them half-carried, half-dragged the limp form of Uzumaki Naruto up the hill, deeper and deeper into the woods. Once or twice, someone would slip, drop their designated body part, and they would have to struggle to get it back up. Sasuke walked at the front, plotting the course for the rest of them, and Kiba could tell that if he so much as touched the body he would loose composure all together. He stuttered as he directed them, and his hands shook hard enough for Kiba to see them.

"Come on," Sasuke said, turning back to support Tayuya, who held Uzumaki's shoulders in an unsteady grip. It had started to rain, just a bit, and the drizzle had made the ground damp where it penetrated the tree-coverings. Just as Sasuke turned away, Sakon's foot slipped, and he stumbled, dropping Naruto's hips. With the middle section unsupported, Tayuya collapsed under the dead weight as well, and the body fell with a thump to the ground, head scraping against the bark of a tree.

They all froze for a second, catching their breath, before Sasuke took control again. "Pick him up."

Sakon's breath misted in front of him heavily, like smoke. "Uchiha, what the fuck are you doing? I don't think we–"

"_Pick it up!"_ Sasuke panted, and snarled, "Pick it the _fuck_ up, or I'll kill you too." His long bangs were plastered to his cheeks with the rain, which had been steadily getting harder. He looked like he was crying, with the rain sliding down his porcelain cheeks. He took a deep breath. "We're almost there."

The other three struggled to get a good hold on the body, and forced themselves up the rest of the hill with it. Sasuke pointed. "There. That's where we'll drop it." Through the trees in the darkness, Kiba could see a black circle on the dark ground.

"You fucker," he whispered, and clutched his best friend's legs closer to his chest. They marched with their burden to the place that Sasuke had pointed out.

No one noticed the stylish silver watch slide out of Naruto's pocket onto the damp ground.

It was a manhole–or maybe a storm drain, it was too dark to tell. Sasuke gestured to Sakon to help him lift the heavy metal cover, and with a grunting effort, they moved it and slid it over to the side. Tayuya then grabbed onto the body's shoulders again, heaving it towards the opening. Kiba jumped, and felt hot tears sting his eyes. He wrapped his arms around the legs, and helped the foul-mouthed girl move the body. Kiba peered over the edge of the drain, and saw a platform, just large enough for about four people to stand on several feet below. It was mostly dry, but getting wetter as the rain continued to fall.

"Put him down there."

Kiba almost sobbed, and followed the order, dropping his friend as carefully as he could. It landed with a muffled _thump_ on its back, legs twisted awkwardly, right arm folded underneath the body. There was just barely enough light to see the bruised and battered face.

Sasuke stood silent for a moment, staring down at the dead boy. On the blonde's cheeks were scratches, three on each cheek, evidence of the mishandling and beating that the young man had gone through. They looked a bit like whiskers. The raven-haired boy coughed suddenly, and motioned for Sakon to help him move the cover back into place.

Kiba lost control of himself, and sobbed loudly. Sasuke looked at him, his face blank, eyes unreadable.

"Come on. You tell a word of this to anyone, and you'll end up just the same..."

It sounded hollow. Empty.

Kiba nodded anyway, and the four teenagers started to hike back through the woods to the car.

Under the ground, broken, bleeding, and unnoticed, light blonde eyelashes fluttered on a scratched cheek.

* * *

DUN, DUN, DUNNN...I had too much caffeine today. 

I love ALL my reviewers! (sounds conceited)

Sorry, **LeiseFlustern**, for making you wait. 'M happy you don't hate me.XP

**yanagiblossoms**, _shhhhhh_, don't reveal _everything!_ Anyway, you're right, and you're a sweetie, so keep reading::heart::

**Sachin**, I totally agree with you. Blech. But I'm happy you like my writing:D

**stuckinabottle**, don't worry. Everything will be alright in the end. And also, there will be very little OroSasu from this point on...I think...;;

And to the rest of you, LOVE.

Aaaaaaand. That's it.

Until NEXT TIME! P.S. tell me about errors you find, 'cause I'm too lazy to find them myself.


	9. Chapter 9

Early post, I know. BUT, y'all got cheated, 'cause it's like...less than 2 pages long. It's more of a "Watch-Sasuke-Deal-With-The-Situation-Badly" kind of chapter, than an actual plot-advancing chapter. I almost forgot to put it in, and then I _needed_ to, 'cause it was just a fun scene, and it had to be seperated from the next chapter so...yeah. Written late at night, so check for errors...

**Disclaimer**: Nope. Don't sue.

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence, YAOI. More Orochimaru and his man-bits.

**Pairings**: InoNaru (minor), OroSasu (minor), NaruSasu (main, but later)...

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

There was blood on his hands. 

He had smelled it when he tried to wipe his eyes; it smelled like ten thousand copper pennies, and it left a streak of redness on the side of his nose and under his eye.

He could feel it when he moved his hands. It was sticky, and thick. It crunched around the edges, drying, and congealed at his knuckles, between his fingers and in the centers of his palms.

He tried not to look at it.

He didn't touch the body because of it. Or rather, not after they had gotten it up and out of the stream. Kiba had been frozen for a second, blank, so he'd needed to take control and help the other two move...it. Him.

He'd touched the face as it lay there, unmoving. The cheeks were scratched, the nose was broken, and blood had welled up in the mouth. There was also plenty of thick, vital liquid on the back of the head, soaking into sunny blonde locks.

And then it had gotten all over his hands.

It didn't drip; there wasn't enough of it for that. But there was enough that when he went back to Orochimaru's place–couldn't go home, not then, not that night–he left a bloody smear on the door knob.

"What the fuck were you thinking?"

He looked up. His eyes were itchy, stinging, like he'd been crying all night. But it was just tiredness. The rain was all it was on his cheeks.

Orochimaru took a step forward. "What the _fuck_ were you thinking? All this for some fucking _stolen jewelry?"_ He looked angry, but his voice trembled. "You fucking killed someone because of something that was _your fault_. You could go to jail."

Then Sasuke laughed. It was a loud, slightly hysterical, bitter, painful laugh. It was not a sane laugh.

It made Orochimaru shiver.

"Oh, and _you're_ one to be preaching," the boy said. "You've killed people for _less_ than that. And stealing?" He barked out another short, caustic laugh. "_Everything_ in here is stolen." He gestured to the room they were in. _Here_ was the room under Orochimaru's bed/loft. It was where he kept his cars, and his personal possessions, and acted as Manda's Auto Shop as well.

Sasuke sauntered past the older man and ran his bloody hands over the hood of a classic silver '07 Toyota Land Cruiser. "_Stolen,_" he hissed.

Nissan Grand Touring Convertible, Solar Orange. "_Stolen_." Bloody smear across the windshield.

Toyota Avalon Limited, Titanium. "Oh, look, _stolen,_" Sasuke said, in a 'funny-about-that kind of voice. He turned and looked directly at Orochimaru as he wrote _stolen_ in blood across the hood.

"Aaand, _stolen_," Sasuke stated, wiping more blood off onto the sides of a 2007 Hyundai Veracruz, Black Diamond.

"And of course, let's not forget _this_ portion of the show."

The teenager stalked on towards the far wall–where a significant amount of other merchandise was located. It had everything, from iPods ro Easy-Bake Ovens. With a steady mantra of "Stolen, stolen, stolen, stolen," Sasuke deliberately knocked piece after piece to the ground, shoving things over, kicking at the fragile items. Orochimaru was seething by the end of it, but dared not move.

Sasuke turned, leaving behind the mess, and approached Orochimaru. He brought his hand up, still slightly bloody, and wan a finger down Orochimaru's cheek.

"And guess what _else_ you've stolen, that could get you locked away for _even __**more**_ years..."

The snake-like man froze. He knew he'd be in trouble for taking an under-aged lover, especially one of dubious consent, but when Sasuke had been in the palm of his hand, he'd had nothing to worry about. Now that Sasuke was wild, out of control, beyond his command, he could dig up a painfully large amount of incriminating evidence against him.

The bloody hand reached down to cup his groin, and Orochimaru had to bite off a curse as those pale, strong fingers tightened around his manhood.

"Fuck off, _lover_."

There was a second of pain as the fingers tightened even more, and then he was released, and his young lover turned stiffly and walked away.

Orochimaru let out a breath he hadn't noticed he had been holding, and walked to the bathroom to start cleaning blood off everything.

* * *

Y'know, if this happened to me (killing someone by accident), I would probably freak instead of be useful too... 

Also, YEEE. My reviewers rock so hard. ::snickers:: I went to the Carmax website to find the cars...XD

To **Ichihime**, we'll get into how Naruto's invisible later, you gotta wait for it. And Sasuke's foster parent's paid bail, so that's why he wasn't in jail. I dunno, the movie didn't explain it either...O.o

**stuckinabottle**, yeah, the movie's goes by the same name. It's not in stores yet though, which sucks. Also, it's better than this, but that's okay. XD

**Kiiriya**, your review made me laugh. :D You rock!

Good day. ::heart::


	10. Chapter 10

OHMIGAWD. I'm soooooooooooo sorry about being such a lazy bum. I promise, I'll be a better person next time. This chapter was ridiculously hard to write...blah. The first part at least. It got easier, but I'm still not certain I'm satisfied with it.

Anyway. Edited slightly to include minor footnotes that I didn't have time for earlier. Went to see Shakespeare's Scottish play(OMGSOAMAZING) but it was in the middle of a medow (ew, bugs) and the generator died. My mum was running lights, and I'm good friends with the artistic director (plus others) so we chatted, they ran about, and we had to call the show halfway through. TT.TT SO sucks.

**Disclaimer**: ...::snort::

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence, YAOI. Lots of almost-crying. Confused Naruto.

**Pairings**: InoNaru (minor), OroSasu (minor), NaruSasu (main, but later)...

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

Naruto whistled as he walked along the road. It was a bright Friday morning, just after eight o' clock when the air still had a bit of chill, and he was going to be late to school, but that wasn't a problem. It wasn't that far, and he wasn't going to be _that _late. 

He brushed a piece of dirt off his orange sweater, and pushed the sleeves up to his elbows. He didn't have his backpack, but with the end of the school year coming up so fast there was nothing they would be doing anyway. Plus, most of his books were in his locker.

The bell had just rung when he ran into his English class. Shikamaru sauntered in behind him, yawning, utterly uncaring as to how late he was.

Jiraiya glowered at them, his aged face stretching like a disgruntled frog.

"You're _late_, slacker."

Naruto opened his mouth to spout out a well rehearsed excuse, but the old pervert waved a hand and gestured to the rest of the class. "Shaddup and sit down," he said, rifling through the papers on his desk.

Naruto ran a hand through his hair, wincing as he pulled out a tangle, and plopped himself into his chair. He leaned forward to rest his face in his hands, smooshing his cheeks up into a puckered look. Ino was chatting with Temari, one of the older girls, and didn't turn to talk to him as usual.

Jiraiya made a triumphant noise, and pulled his grade-book out from under his desk. "Okay, brats," he growled, scratching his chin, "Let's talk about the poems we heard the other day."

Konoha high school worked on a rotating block schedule, with certain classes every other day. With six required classes, and other electives, the required courses would be categorized as A, B, C, D, E, and F. On one week, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays would be ABC days, while Tuesdays and Thursdays would be DEF days. Then the next week, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays were DEF days, while the other days were ABC days. It was a system designed to prepare kids for college and the schedules they were to encounter after leaving high school. Unfortunately, three hour-and-a-half classes a day didn't cut down on the work-load at all. Also, excuses for not having enough time to complete the homework were deliberately ignored, because students had an extra day to slack off before being required to hand in said homework. **(1)**

Kankuro, Temari's older brother, spoke up first.

"Uzumaki's poem." Naruto perked up, blinking attentively at the large brunette. "What the fuck? 'Flying around like a bird'? Night doesn't fly. It's _night_. That's shit."

Naruto sat up, indignant. "Hey, bastard–"

"It's a _simile_. We learned about it," Chouji said, almost baffled at Kankuro's inability to understand literary devices. "I thought it was pretty good..."

"It doesn't even rhyme!" Kankuro's poem had been about puppets. It rhymed the whole way through; all three pages of it.

"What's _that_ got anything to do with it?!" Naruto snarled, leaning forward to the older boy.

"It was crap. Uzumaki's always trying to make himself important, and 'cool'. He's just a loser emo kid, looking for attention."

Naruto bit his tongue. Ino was talking like she hadn't almost had sex with him the other night. Like she hadn't been thriving on his attention for the past several months. It hurt like a bitch, to be honest.

"Bastard's got issues, man," Kin said from the back. "_Major_ mental issues."

Everyone chuckled when Sai murmured, "Whatever it was it sucked." Ino laughed the loudest.

"Hey. Is this a _game?_"

The rest of the class continued to chatter, ignoring him.

"Are you guys playing a game? You think this is funny?" Naruto turned around in his seat to look around the classroom better. Chouji and Shikamaru in the corner looked uncomfortable (Shikamaru actually just looked like he would rather be napping, but he seemed awkward with the situation anyway), and Aburame Shino just sat silent, completely uninterested in bashing his classmates.

Jiraiya walked past him, hands folded behind his back. His brows were drawn into a slight frown, as people continued to talk.

"Hello?" Naruto said. He stood up. "Anybody? Pay _attention!_ Guys!" Doing a quick calculation in his head, he reassured himself that it was Friday, May 20th, and was _not_, in fact, April 1st. He wasn't sure if it was Pick-On-Naruto Day, but he probably would have noticed a whole lot sooner if that was the case.

No one noticed him. Jiraiya accidently ran into his shoulder as he continued to prowl the rows of desks. He didn't stop to apologize (not that he usually would).

Naruto promptly freaked. It was too familiar. It as just like his dreams. "Hello? Hello!" Wake up, everybody!" He stepped away from his chair, spinning helplessly in a confused circle. "Hey!" Breathing faster, he began to move, drumming on Kin's desk, and waving obnoxiously in Zaku's face. "Hello! Hello! Pay some _fucking _attention! I'm _RIGHT HERE!" _No one even looked at him. "Can _anybody_ hear me?!"

Feeling panic creeping up around his chest, Naruto turned again, working his way towards the front. His hand brushed against Shino's thick edition of _The Odyssey_, and, without pausing to think, grabbed it from the science-genius's desk, hurling it as hard as he could at Jiraiya's infamous poem collection. The heavy book smashed into the shelf, knocking the whole thing to the floor with a loud _crash_ and clatter.

Everyone jumped slightly.

Naruto tried to get a hold of his breathing, and dropped his arm. His fingers brushed against something. Looking down, he saw Shino's thick edition of _The Odyssey_, sitting on his desk.

He looked up.

The shelf on the wall, the one that had just come crashing to the floor, was exactly as it had ben before he took his anger out on it.

"Hey, _brats._" Jiraiya said, walking past Naruto again, not even looking at him. "This is supposed to be _constructive criticism_. Why don't we have this conversation when Uzumaki's actually _here_? We'll talk about this when he gets back to class, yeah?"

* * *

Naruto was on the verge of hyperventilating. His impossibly blue eyes darted around the hall wildly, watching students as they passed him with no sign of recognition. He had tried _everything_: dancing, waving his arms, blathering on insanely, and there was no reaction. 

It was like he didn't exist.

The blond felt his heart pounding in his chest, his breath coming too fast, as he rounded a corner on his way to the principal's office.

And plowed straight into another person, knocking them down.

The girl (for it was a girl–small, black haired, and painfully adorable. Naruto had a feeling she had a crush on him, but he couldn't be sure. He was, after all, oblivious to that sort of stuff) yelped, falling back and landing hard. Her books scattered, papers everywhere. Her pale, pale eyes were wide in shock, and a fierce blush took her cheeks as an automatic defense reaction.

Naruto instinctively bent to help her up, but as soon as he blinked, he saw Hyuuga Hinata's purple-black hair bob as she brushed her long-cut bangs from her face. She held her books close to her chest, her simply stylish backpack held over one shoulder. Her long legs extended elegantly from a slim skirt, and her face was as moonlight pale as ever.

She didn't even glance at him, though he knew that she would have noticed as soon as he was within a fifteen foot radius, and would have promptly started blushing and stuttering as she always did.

"Fuck," Naruto said, and tried very hard not to cry.

* * *

"No, Miss Uzumaki.**(2)** Naruto hasn't come in to school today. His English professor said that he was absent first period, and no one has told me they saw him today." 

Sarutobi was worried. Tsunade had called just fifteen minutes before, asking if her nephew had shown up at school. The panic in her voice was painfully obvious as she explained that she hadn't seen him since the night before.

The elderly principal stood in his office, staring out the window at the courtyard between the main building and the athletic centre, absently uttering reassurances to the distraught woman. There was a knock on his door. Shiranui Genma, one of campus security, opened the door without ceremony, poking his head in.

He shook his head, chewing frantically on a plastic straw.

No sign of Naruto.

* * *

Sarutobi had to ask Miss Uzumaki to hold when Genma popped back in, asking him to come talk to Kiba. 

Naruto had been standing in the same room for quite a while, listening to his principal try and convince his aunt that nothing had happened to him.

But he remembered. He remembered now, what Sasuke had done to him.

There was a mirror hanging on one of the walls, and as Naruto snuck over to the phone (utterly ignoring how well the rest of the world had succeeded in not noticing him), he caught his reflection in it.

Scars, on his face. Six of them altogether; three on each cheek. He hadn't had them before, and as he approached the mirror, he could see that they were fresh. Naruto reached up a hand, caressing one set of scars, feeling the faint ridges in his once smooth flesh.

Acting on instinct, as most people do when they notice something new in their reflection, Naruto made a face. Then another. He stuck out his tongue, pulled his ears back and puffed out his cheeks, crossed his eyes (which didn't help him at all), and scowled at his reflection.

His reflection copied all those moves, but the blonde swore he saw something mischievous and evil in the eyes. They were really obnoxious.

A beep from the phone distracted him, and he turned back to his original goal.

Reaching out hesitantly, Naruto brushed his fingers against the shiny black surface of the land-line phone. His fingers left no oily residue and fingerprint smears like they should have, even though he felt the phone, real, solid, _there_ beneath his hand.

He picked it up, almost expecting it to drop through his hand like he were made of air, but it didn't. It hummed, and vibrated slightly with the electricity running through it as he put it to his ear.

"Tsunade?"

"..."

"Hey, Tsunade? Granny?"

The woman on the other end of the line said nothing in return.

"_Oi! Listen!_ Granny, you gotta listen to me! Hello?! Please, _please_, I'm _DEA–_"

Sarutobi came back in, and picked up the phone from where he left it on the desk earlier. Naruto watched from the corner. "Hello? Yes, Miss Uzumaki, it's me. No, we still haven't found any sign of Naruto ever coming in today. Have you called the police?" There was a pause while Naruto's aunt answered. The boy could hear her from far away, high pitched and tinny, but the words were indiscernible. "Well, wait for them in your house, they'll help you out. We'll continue to look around for someone who has seen him." The old man moved around his desk, sitting heavily in his plush leather chair. The comfort of it did nothing to his haggard face, and he brought one hand up to rub his forehead. "Yes, Miss Uzumaki, I'm sure. Yes, we'll keep in touch. All right. Good day, Miss Uzumaki."

He hung up, and dropped his head to the desk with a solid thunk. Naruto winced as he snuck out the door. Old people shouldn't do that. It might give them Alzheimer.

* * *

Tsunade was frantic when the police finally arrived at her house. She had gotten up that morning, wondering why she hadn't heard Naruto coming home last night; normally she was a light sleeper, and Naruto never really stayed out very late. After fifteen minutes of waiting for him to get to breakfast (after 7 years of living with the boy, she knew exactly how long it took him to wake up and get ready for school), she took it upon herself to go wake him up. 

But when she entered his basement lair, there was no one there. Not only was the room empty, but the bed hadn't been slept in, and his backpack was still at the foot of his bed.

She had panicked, thinking the most awful things had happened to him, and then she remembered the conversation of the day before. She ran a hand through her long honey-blonde hair and pulled at a split end. The ticket. The ticket, how could she have forgotten the ticket? The flight to England, the argument, the...everything.

But she couldn't be sure, because his stuff was still there, in his room.

So she phoned the school, hoping that he had just spent the night at someone else's house without informing her. But no luck. They hadn't seen him.

When Sarutobi suggested she call the police, a _"Well, duh"_ feeling washed over her. The police promised to send some people over, because despite the usual 48 hours needed to call it a Missing Persons case, Tsunade was well known, and missing people didn't happen very often in Konoha. So rarely in fact, that most of the town would get into an uproar when it happened.

_Ding-dong_.

Tsunade nearly ran to the door, pulling her dressing gown around her bust, pushing loose hair out of her eyes. She flung open the door, and stopped.

There were two officers, both roughly early to mid thirties. The police in front was rather...bizarre. His hair was an abnormally light colour, like a dirty, brownish platinum blond. It looked very much like his hair was actually gray, though he seemed much too young to be so (she couldn't really tell how old he should be, seeing as a good three-quarters of his face was covered). It was wild and windswept, sticking out to the left like a case of very, _very_ bad bed-head. An eyepatch covered his left eye, and a dark blue cloth mask rode up over his nose. His right eye was the only thing she could see of his face.

"Yo," he said, lifting his hand lazily in a salute. He stood casually, dressed in plain clothes, and looked a bit more like a bum than a cop, but the badge on his belt, the gun on his hip, and the calculating look in his eye suggested otherwise. "You're Uzumaki Tsunade?"

She nodded, eyeing him suspiciously.

"My name is Hatake Kakashi. This is my partner, Umino Iruka," the gray-haired man said, gesturing to his partner, who waved sheepishly.

Iruka looked significantly more normal than his eccentric partner. His skin was coffee coloured, and his dark brown eyes twinkled comfortingly. His dark hair was drawn up into a high pony-tail, and his police uniform fit his broad shoulders well. A large scar, lighter than the rest of his skin, stretched across the bridge of his nose, and Tsunade wondered how he could have gotten such a wound without having broken his nose.

"We were told that you filed a Missing Persons report, is that true?"

"Um, yes," Tsunade muttered, and stood back to let the two men inside. "My nephew, Naruto went out yesterday afternoon and didn't come back. I called his school first," she said, leading them into the living room, gesturing for them to sit, "But they said he didn't come in to school. No one there has seen him..."

"Well, Miss Uzumaki, he could be at a friends house. Have you taken that into consideration?"

She nodded.

Iruka shifted in his seat. "Did your nephew say anything to you before he left? Did you have a fight, or was there some sort of indication that he might have left of his own accord?"

The distressed doctor heaved back a sob, and nodded again. In a faltering voice, she told the cops about their argument, about the ticket to London, and Naruto heading out that evening to a party. The Hyuuga's party. Then she hadn't heard from him.

The cops looked at each other. "Miss," Iruka spoke cautiously, careful not to upset Tsunade any more than she was, "This means that there is a large possibility that he has gone to London. We'll contact the airlines to see if he was on his flight. If not, we'll start conducting a search. We'll call you later," they stood up respectfully, and bowed slightly, "If you can find people you know care about your nephew, then they can help us with our search."

Tsunade nodded, and thanked the cops, blinking tears back.

They bowed again, and left, talking quietly.

* * *

Naruto approached his silent aunt. She sat on the sofa staring down at her clasped hands, still wearing her pajamas and dressing gown. 

"Hey, Aunt Tsunade? Tsunade?"

She sighed, and stood, turning to the kitchen.

Naruto trailed after her, a pleading look on his newly scarred face.

"Tsunade-granny, you gotta listen to me. You gotta hear me. Please?"

The woman reached up, tying her hair back in a single high ponytail, and set about making tea. She always made tea when she was upset, the rest of the time is was coffee.

"Granny, I'm dead. You need to find me."

She kept her back to the doorway, and therefore to Naruto as well. Utterly unaware of his presence, she took a shaking breath, and waited for the water to boil.

"I'm dead. I'm dead and I'm never coming back."

For some reason, Tsunade's heart took a plummeting dive to her bare feet in response to a statement that she hadn't even heard.

* * *

**(1) Because I'm lazy and unfortunately unoriginal, I just used my own school's system to deal with why Naruto would have had English on Wednesday and Friday and not Thursday. It works.**

**(2) Tsunade. I know, I know, but she doesn't have a family name, and since she's Naruto's paternal aunt (in this story XD) and unmarried, she's now an Uzumaki.**

I don't even remember all the wonderfully lovely people who reviewed. (I'll go check that right now, shall I?)

OH. OMG, **Lunar Chasmodai** reviewed, and threatened to sick lesbian zombies on me::squeals:: YAY. Not so much with the zombie-eating-of-my-brains part, but the rest of it's cool. XD She's an _amazing_ writer, so you all should go read her fics. Right now. Go!

**LeiseFlustern**, **Anissina June, awegt4, blue-genjutsu, anime-love-xoxo, stuckinabottle** (I love having regulars:D), and **IceCreamXD**, you ALL ROCK SO HARD. LOVE.

Also, because I got this comment a lot, no one checked Naruto's pulse becasue they were all freaking out. Like major. You saw how Sasuke reacted. _(Crazy...)_ But yeah. Now I have to go. Or I'll be late.

I wish my mouse worked. Things would be so much easier if my mouse worked properly instead of freezing up on me. Stupid cordless mouses. Utter crap, never buy one.


	11. Chapter 11

So, this chapter is probably filled with holes and other such errors, because I wrote it on a sugar high at like 1-3 in the morning. ::shrug:: It's also (mostly) not even in the movie, but whatever. I couldn't remember for the life of me what happened next, so I put this in, then connected it to another thing I remembered. Eheh. ;;

**Disclaimer**: ...::snort::

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence, YAOI. Naruto-angst. Sasuke-angst. Mentions of rape.

**Pairings**: InoNaru (minor), OroSasu (minor), NaruSasu (main, but later)...

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

Naruto couldn't stay in the house. It was too quiet, too still. Dead, just like he was. 

With a shuddering look around, he left, slamming the door behind him in hopes that he wasn't non-existent. He walked slowly, making his way down the road in silence, trying to think and coming up with nothing more than: _I'm dead. I'm dead._

_He killed me._

Chattering voices caught his attention suddenly, and a middle aged man slammed into his shoulder, walking by without even noticing, laughing happily at something his wife said.

The man was big–not fat, but bulky and broad, and well muscled–so in any other case, being run down by such a man would have hurt quite a bit. But when Naruto stumbled backwards, expecting the pain, he didn't feel anything, just the sense memory of having been touched.

Then he screamed.

In the middle of the street–for he had somehow made his way all the way downtown, and was just starting to enter the commercial district of town–he threw back his head, his blond locks flailing around his face, his expression made vicious by the new marks on his cheeks, and shouted as loud as he possibly could. He swore, he raved, he yelled.

The people around him jumped, staring slightly, but then he blinked, and they hadn't even turned in his direction.

Had they heard it, it probably would have been even more shocking than their reaction had insinuated. Naruto screamed again, a pain filled, heart-wrenching sound, a sound of loss, of pain, of loneliness, and of the inability to be seen.

A crash and the sound of abused plastic bags distracted him, and cut his scream off short. Naruto was breathing heavily, and he could hear blood pounding in his ears as he turned to try and locate the sound.

He swore when he saw Sasuke standing there, just outside the entrance of a grocery store. His hoodie was missing, as it had gotten too hot in recent days, but he wore a black quilted vest over a thin long-sleeved shirt. His jeans were baggy and scruffy, with a rip in the left knee and another just below the pocket on his right thigh. The rip on his thigh cast a strange shadow on pale skin, darker than the rest, and oddly shaped. Naruto didn't focus on it, but pushed it to the back of his mind to look at later. Sasuke wore a black beanie over his hair, his raven-black bangs pushed back and (somewhat) out of his face–Naruto couldn't remember seeing all of the boy's head in years, it was always under that blasted hood of his. But there was something wrong with the scene.

The older boy–for he was older, but only by a few months, and Naruto had felt some sort of perverse pleasure in being taller than him when they had that confrontation in the cafeteria, even if it was only by an inch or two, and now all he wanted to do was kill the bastard–was staring directly at him.

Or rather, just off to the left, right about level with Naruto's ear, if his ear happened to home out of the side of his forehead. Either way, it was in Naruto's direction, something that had seemed impossible only a few seconds ago, and his eyes were wide with shock and horror.

Naruto blinked reluctantly, knowing it would end, but Sasuke was still standing there, still staring. Sasuke sook himself, almost backing up, before he tripped over one of the grocery bags he had dropped. Snapped out of his daze by the need to keep his balance, the black-haired boy knelt to pick the bags back up, feeling one gingerly. He swore, and Naruto could see a sticky liquid starting to leak out of the bottom of the paper bag. Eggs, probably. Maybe some sort of drink, judging by the crash when it dropped.

Gathering up the bags, Sasuke stood again, supporting the paper bag on his hip, and holding another three plastic bags in his other hand. He shifted them all slightly, trying to get a better grip, and looked back cautiously at the sidewalk to the right of the store.

Exactly where Naruto stood.

The pale boy shook his head, like someone coming out of a dream, trying to convince themselves that it wasn't real, and turned away from the scene.

Naruto followed him, not even bothering to hide himself, because he knew it wouldn't matter.

* * *

Sakura was sitting on the floor of their tiny living room when Sasuke unlocked the door. She looked up as he wandered through the kitchen, depositing the groceries in their respective places. The eggs were mostly broken, only five out of twelves had remained intact, and the bottles of liquor were completely smashed as well. (Suigetsu, who ran the liquor store had old ties with Orochimaru–though he couldn't say he was unhappy about the growing rift between the two–and consented to give Sasuke alcohol to appease his adopted father.) 

But the terror that had run up his spine in that one second had been too much. He couldn't honestly say just what had made him react like that, but it had been bad, whatever it was.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura squealed, abandoning her drawings on the floor. "Hey, Sasuke-kun, guess what me and Lee did today!" Rock Lee was a helper at Sakura's school. There was no one else in the world that could have been more perfect to deal with kids than that ridiculous monstrosity of a human being. It was a wonder that he didn't scar the children with his green spandex, but his personality and vigor and sheer enthusiasm for life was enough to endear the kids to him. Those that weren't scared off by his eyebrows, at least. "We built a house! Out of wood and paper, and then he helped me put on a battery, and a light, and we had to tape everything together, and then some of it fell apart, but he said it wasn't a problem and fixed it, and then it worked, and the light came on, and Ms Shizune was so proud, because I was the only one who could do it right, even though Lee helped me, and I got _candy!_"

Sasuke smirked, and finished putting the food away. He dropped his hand, and Sakura immediately latched onto it, holding it like a dear possession. Her strawberry-blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and hung down just past the collar of her t-shirt.

"Oh? That's exciting. What else did you do?" he asked, leading his sister into the sitting room, plopping down on the couch. Sakura clambered up immediately, and proceeded to tell him all about her day, including the horrific pizza and the bouncing carrots for lunch.

"Hey, Sasuke-kun," the girl looked hesitant, almost unwilling to ask the question. "Can we go to the park today?"

Sasuke sighed, frowning. His emotional state was in enough of a wreck, if anything happened beyond his control, he would probably break down. Also, the park happened to be in Sound's old territory. Which meant Orochimaru. Sasuke would rather be either on good terms with Orochimaru and his underlings, or as disconnected as possible, before he had to see any of them again.

"Soon." Sakura deflated. "Sunday," he added with conviction, determined to keep the promise, Orochimaru be damned.

The girl he held so close to his heart beamed, bounced, and started talking more about her day and the turtle they had found in the stream.

Sasuke let himself relax–just a bit–listening to her talk.

* * *

"Don't pretend you're human, bastard." 

Naruto sat on Sasuke's cluttered kitchen table, ardently ignoring the shoddy apartment and the almost desolate feeling of the place.

He watched the bastard, watched him fake his humanity, his life. He might be able to fool a little girl, but Naruto knew. He knew just how little humanity there was in that asshole, and he was determined to haunt him for the rest of eternity.

The girl was kinda funny though. But annoying. She distracted him from his fierce glaring competition with the back of Sasuke's head. If she kept being so damn cute, he wasn't sure he could set that bastard's head on fire with his laser eye-beams he was _positive_ he had, now that he was dead.

Also, it made it harder to associate the pale boy with the ruthless murderer that had killed him.

There was a knock on the door, and Sasuke got up to answer it.

Naruto gaped at the cops that stood there. Sonuvabitch, they _followed him._

Then he remembered that he was dead and no one could see him, so they must have ben there for Sasuke.

"Yo, Sasuke," Kakashi said, and it looked sort of like he might have been grinning, maybe, but Naruto couldn't quite tell. "Long time no see. Can we come in?" Iruka looked distinctly uncomfortable with his partner's unprofessional attitude.

"No," Sasuke said, and tried to shut the door on them.

"Hey, hey now. That's not nice. This could be taken as failure to cooperate with an officer of the law, y'know," Kakashi said lightly, sliding his foot between the door and the wall so the teenager couldn't close it no matter how hard he tried.

"Fuck _off_, Hatake," he snarled, and Naruto perked up, discerning signs of recognition and familiarity between the two. Sasuke had either been in trouble with the cops before, or something else had happened.

"We heard you had a bit of a scuffle with the Uzumaki boy from your school."

Sasuke twitched, and Naruto could just barely see a shudder going up his spine. "So? It was just a fight. He's an idiot. What of it?"

Naruto hopped off the table, quite ready to tell the bastard off, when heavy footsteps rang out in the hall, and Sasuke visibly stiffened. Without a glance behind him, he shoved his way between the two officers, accidently stepping on Iruka's foot, not so accidentally elbowing Kakashi in the side, and stormed down the hall towards the stairs–away from the elevators and the approaching footsteps.

Iruka and Kakashi turned the greet the newcomer, apparently having recognized him (Kakashi at least), and Naruto inched out the door to see who it was.

A tall, heavy set man, with dirty blond hair, dressed in a security guard's uniform eyed the cops suspiciously.

"Hatake," he said ("A-_hah!_" thought Naruto) with a short nod. "What do you want?"

"Good to see you too, Mr. Haruno," the grey-haired man said, squinting his single eye in that same almost-not-really-smile Naruto had tried to interpret earlier. "We were just here to talk to Sasuke about a classmate of his. Has he said anything to you?"

Mr. Haruno shook his head, his jaw set firmly. There was a twinge of hatred and anger in his eye that made both Naruto and Iruka nervous, but Kakashi, with his bizarre confidence, acted like nothing was wrong.

"No, nothing. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to get into my home."

"By all means," Kakashi said, stepping back with a grandiose bow. "Just tell me," he added, as Mr. Haruno made to move past him, "Nothing untoward of the...domestic variety has happened recently...has there?"his single eye was painfully calculating, and Mr. Haruno drew himself up, affronted.

"No, there have been no such things in my house. That boy has not spoken to me about anything, talk to him if you want. He's probably on the roof." With that, he gave a short nod to both officers, bidding them a good day, and stepped inside the apartment, closing the door resolutely behind him.

The cops looked at each other. Naruto looked at the cops. As one, they all turned to the elevator, heading up to the roof.

* * *

When the doors dinged closed, Iruka ventured to ask the question. 

"What sort of...untoward things _could_ have happened? What were you insinuating?"

Kakashi shifted and sighed, scratching the back of his neck.

"You know that Sasuke's family, the Uchiha's, were all killed in a fire about ten years ago. All his living relations–family reunion I think. So, he was put into foster care for several years, until The Haruno's agreed to adopt him. He was...thirteen? At the time. Something like that. Mm, just turned thirteen." He shuffled his feet again, and slouched against the wall of the elevator, watching the numbers light up as they ascended to the roof. "Well, Haruno Yashin–the man you just met–was a cop back then, working with me in the force. But he was well taken to drinking–alcoholism ran in his family, I believe.

"One night, a few weeks after the adoption papers were signed, we got a call from Sasuke from a payphone almost a mile away from he house they were living in. We picked him up, but he wouldn't really tell us anything–just that he didn't want to go back. Haruno drank too much, he said, and it hurt.

"There was a lot of speculation, no one really knew what had happened, because Sasuke wouldn't tell us anything," Kakashi reached out, hitting **Door Close** just as the elevator dinged, trying to give them more time before confronting the teen. "But the doctor told us what had most likely happened after we had him look the poor kid over. There was no actual evidence, but it was enough to do _something_. We would've taken him out if he wanted, but he said he had to protect Sakura. She was three at the time." He sighed, and a weary look entered his one dark eye. "Haruno had to turn in his badge, and has been working over the past few years to get anywhere. Security guard's the highest he's ever going to get after that. I'm surprised he managed to get even that far."

The doors dinged again, and he left, stepping out onto the gravel on the roof, eye searching for the lanky figure of a broken teenager.

"W-wait!" Kakashi turned to Iruka, who had a horrified look on his face. "Was...was it–"

Kakashi cut him off, nodding silently.

Iruka stared after him, frozen. Naruto didn't quite understand the implications, until he heard the horrified whisper as the kind-hearted, dark skinned police walked off the lift and the doors started to close.

Naruto had to fight the doors to get out, mind reeling at the fact.

"_Raped_."

* * *

OMG. 

So anyway. Let me tell you about my life recently, because I can and I'm willing to waste some time. I just recently started a class at a local art college, working with jewelry. It's lots of fun, _and_ we get to use the blowtorch. XD Also, I win at Driver's Ed. W00t! Also...I'm losing at finishing my cosplay outfit for Otakon. (XDomgsuchanerd) HaseoRAWK. If I can finish it.

Now, about the story. Sasuke's double in the actual movie wasn't _actually_ raped. There are implications about something happening, that I can't remember if they came to anything, or it if was just a hint as to how bad life was, but I'm pretty sure they weren't raped. Mostly, I did it to torture Sasuke. XD

**awegt4** brought up a good point that I had _tried_ to touch on earlier, but pretty much failed completely. Naruto--before he was killed/comasized--did _not_ have the whisker marks we all know and love. He got them in the fight, and when he woke up dead, they were still on his cheeks. I made one or two vague mentions about how smooth his cheeks were, but as I said to **awegt4**...well, I can't remember what I said, but I'm sure it was important, and it went something along the lines of how awkward it would be to put in a paragraph describing how utterly smooth and flawless his face was, with absolutely no markings that could possibly be associated with foxes/whiskers/anything else possible. Or something.

**Sachin** brought up another clarification point that I would like to...clarify... Yeah. Well, _we_ know that Naruto's not dead. BUT no one else knows. Not even Naruto. All he remembers is being beat to (near) death, and nothing from then on, so if you wait, we'll get more into that in the next chapter Ithink...

**Escalus**(I like your name), glad I could turn you over to the dark side of fan-ism so easily. :D We've got cookies if you want.

**Lunar Chasmodai**, you'd get another OMG if you stopped with the zombies. ::shudder:: I like girls just as much as anyone, but if they're going to eat my brains, I'd prefer to be just friends. XD A pulse helps too. And don't worry. Orochimaru gets what's coming to him. ::evil cackle::

**LeiseFlustern, **::hugs:: you sweet thing you, I don't know how anyone could ever ignore you! Thanks for being such a wonderful reviewer::heart:: Plus, you're one of...2? You and **Sachin** were the only people who commented on my mouse rant, and that made me feel really, really special, so HUGS FOR YOU BOTH!

**Anissina June**, I'd pull pranks too, if I weren't too busy angsting over everything. XD

**Ichihime, blue-genjutsu, stuckinabottle**, you all ROCK. Especially 'cause you keep coming back. Feeds my ego like _woah_. An' to **stuckinabottle**, I used a bit of reference from _Neverwhere_ by Neil Gaiman to try and get being unseen without not existing (i.e. not being able to touch anything) down. It was _hard._ XD

And to the people who get annoyed by ranting about reviewers, I know how you feel. But believe me, once you get some great review like these ::points:: wonderful people, you just can't help but rant. XD

Now, as much as I love all of you, I'm about to be late to class. I have to walk a mile and a half. X.x Thankfully it's downhill. Uphill the whole way back in the midday sun though. Guh. ::dies::


	12. Chapter 12

... ::cough:: Uh...SORRY. ::flees:: I had writer's block! Be nice to me, it's my _birthdaayyy! _Or it will be...on Thursday...

**Disclaimer**: ...::snort::

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence, YAOI. Naruto-angst. Sasuke-angst. Tsunade-angst. Foxy-angst.

**Pairings**: InoNaru (minor), OroSasu (minor), NaruSasu (main, but later)...

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

"I told you to fuck off, Hatake." 

In the late afternoon sun, anyone else would have been sweltering in the black clothes Sasuke wore, but his composure remained the same. If anything, he looked somewhat cold.

"And I told _you _I wanted to talk."

Kakashi stepped over to the edge of the roof where Sasuke stood staring out across the city. There was no fence around the edge, only a two-foot high wall of concrete. Kakashi sat on this, gesturing back to his partner to join him. "So, about that Uzumaki kid. Naruto, was it?"

Sasuke shrugged, indicating boredom. "What about him?"

"You seen 'im lately? 'Cause his aunt says he didn't come home last night. And, uh–no one's seen him at school." Kakashi shifted, reaching into one of the pockets of his jacket to pull out a small orange book. Iruka looked appalled. "We heard you and he had a bit of a rumble in the cafeteria a couple days ago. Anything happen after that? No...resentful feelings, I trust?"

"No. Whatever the idiot did, he probably deserved it." The boy turned away from the officer, his fingers twitching just slightly, like he was trying to shake water from them.

Kakashi cocked his head to the side, peering over the top of his book. Never taking his eyes off Sasuke, he batted absently at Iruka's pestering hands that attempted to take the book from him.

"So, nothing happened." It was not a question; the doubt spoke for itself.

Sasuke eyed the officers over his shoulder, still facing away, and said nothing. His deep black eyes were defiant, unyielding. They gave away nothing as the boy pulled out a cigarette and lit it, cupping his hand around the flame to prevent it from going out. He took a deep drag, letting the smoke fill his lungs before he let it out in an explosive exhale.

Kakashi shrugged and, not bothering to put his book away, stood, pulling Iruka up by the elbow (Much to the chagrin of the older man. Four months apparently made a distinct difference in regards to maturity, responsibility, and utter ridiculousness).**(1)**

"Ma, too bad." He stretched, putting on a blatant display of disregard. Sasuke rolled his eyes and folded his arms across his chest, one propped against the other to hold his cancer-stick in place. "Well–" The silver-haired man approached the teen carefully, "If you..._do_ happen to hear anything– find something out–gimmie a call. Here's my number," a business card displaying a well known adult book store on one side and a nearly illegibly scrawled phone-number on the back was handed to the teen, who snorted in disgust as he took it, "Feel free to call me anytime."

"Yeah–sure Hatake."

Iruka bowed as they exited the roof.

Sasuke fingered the card for a few seconds before stuffing it negligently into his pocket, and inhaled another lungful of smoke.

"You son of a _bitch._"

Naruto didn't care much for Sasuke. At all really. The previously overheard conversation flew straight over his head as he watched Sasuke effortlessly deny his entire involvement in last night's plot. It didn't matter–that was the past. What was _now_, was that _Naruto_ was _dead. Now_.

"You _fucking_ son of a _bitch!_"

Snarling, Naruto raced at the silent teen, who turned to him with the expected blank look that morphed into shock and fear as the hitherto-unseen boy grabbed him by his thin upper arms and forcibly shoved him to the edge.

Without thinking, Naruto threw the taller boy off the side of the eleven-storey apartment building.

Sasuke's eyes widened in terror, and his mouth opened in a strangled scream as he fell, helpless, unprepared, to the ground. Naruto's body shook in anger–no hint of regret–and waited for the sick thud that would signify Sasuke's awful landing.

It never came.

Naruto stared over the edge of the roof as Sasuke stubbed out his cigarette on the low barrier and walked slowly to the elevator, eyes on the ground.

* * *

Naruto was angry. 

He was really fucking angry.

He had run around the city twice, and not a single person had noticed him. It was frustrating, it was depressing, and it was painful.

It was just like his dreams.

He stormed into his house, slamming the door hard enough to hear the wood crack, but he knew that if he turned around there would be no damage to the door or the frame.

Naruto was really, really fucking angry.

He also knew where his grandfather's old gun was kept.

It was a really old gun–he wouldn't have been surprised if it didn't work at all, but it was loaded (had been for several years, never been used), and easily obtained.

Naruto flew up the stairs into the attic, taking no care to be quiet, because he knew for a fact that no one could hear him anyway.

The handgun was old–obviously–but well kept, and in good condition.

Naruto sat himself down on the floor of the attic, breathing in the dust, and stared at the pistol.

Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes tight, and placed the barrel his mouth, letting his tongue trace the old scratches on the metal.

He made a face–it tasted horrible–and pulled the trigger with a deafening bang.

It worked–for a second.

"_FUCK."_

Naruto stomped back down the attic stairs, flipping off the gun rack where the old silver pistol still sat.

* * *

Tsunade paused with her fist raised, ready to knock. With a sinking feeling, she dropped her hand and pushed the door open. Naruto wasn't in there, after all. She hadn't bothered to change into normal clothes–having called in sick to work–so she still wore her silky green dressing gown over her nightclothes. The window had been left open during the night, so a warm breeze floated easily in with the soft sounds of birds. 

It would have been peaceful if it weren't for the fact that the most important thing was missing: Her nephew.

Tsunade sighed, hugging herself and closed her eyes, breathing in the scent of the missing boy's room.

The room smelled just like Naruto (or Naruto smelled just like the room, either one was plausible). The light scent of paper; sticky sweet smell of ink; the foul stench of unwashed socks; ramen.

Tsunade's eyebrow twitched. Naruto probably had hoarded away half the packets of ramen she bought him–it wouldn't surprise her what with how fast those things disappeared. Naruto was addicted to the stuff, and it would probably take counseling to change his mind.

She snorted, half-amused, half-annoyed. She would have to have a talk with him about not keeping it in his room though.

Then she remembered he was missing, and sat down heavily on Naruto's bedspread, staring blankly at the floor.

After Arashi and Minako **(2)** died, Tsunade had attached herself to the blond boy like a leech, taking as much care as possible that Naruto would never feel pain. It was the least she could do–to save the last remnant of her brother's love for life. Unfortunately, middle school had been the hardest time for him, and Tsunade had been trying so hard to keep herself detached that it wasn't surprising Naruto had some feelings of resentment towards her.

But Naruto reminded her so much of Dan, so much of Nawaki, so much of Arashi, that it hurt to look at him sometimes. It took only a short while to get used to having him around, but coping with–with everything, that took longer. And by the time she had accepted Naruto, _loved_ him as her own son–he was too far gone.

And that hurt even more.

Tsunade fiddled with her ponytail. It felt weird to have it back like that–she hadn't worn it in that style since Dan. It was just an instinct that made her go for one tail instead of her usual two.

She blinked as something sticking out from under the bed caught her eye.

Reaching down, the blonde woman picked up the small notebook she had seen Naruto carry around. It wasn't a fancy notebook–or even attractive. Its cover was battered, though clean, and it was painfully orange. Naruto's name was written in blue ballpoint pen on the cover, his handwriting shaky enough that she could tell he'd had it for years. The spiral binding was still in decent shape, though it had seen better days, and as she opened the cover to the first page, there was no doubt that it was his.

_**THE MAGNIFICENT**_

_**TALENTED**_

_**AMAZING**_

_**UZUMAKI NARUTO'S DIARY,**_

_**FUTURE KING OF EVERYTHING.**_

_**TOUCH AND YOU DIE.**_

Tsunade allowed herself to laugh softly; Naruto was so predictable.

She flipped through the pages quickly, watching as Naruto's life passed before her eyes. The handwriting morphed, grew neater, cleaner, sloppier, ridiculous, until it was mostly chicken scratch. There were half-rendered drawings, raunchy stick-figure doodles, and notes from all classes.

As she reached the end, she noticed the poems getting darker–sadder. It wasn't just the words, it was the way he wrote them. This poem was written in foppish, loopy handwriting, and the scribbles over words were heavier. Another poem was written in spiky handwriting, almost panicked, and there were a few places where Naruto hadn't pressed hard enough, so the ink faded out slightly.

The last few used pages were all the same poem–or different variations of it.

Tsunade read it slowly, mouthing the words at first, 'til her voice grew, and she spoke hoarsely.

""_When I sleep, the night flows in._

_Through me, around me,_

* * *

Naruto recited with her. He took a step closer with each line, until he was standing right in front of her, his knees brushing her hands that held the notebook. 

"_I hear it crawl, I watch it breath,_

_It circles around, like birds of prey._

_My dreams are broken, but bright,_

_Like the—"_

Tsunade's voice broke, and with a sob she dropped the book, vanishing form the room as fast as possible.

Naruto looked tiredly at the notebook, lying innocently on the floor. He'd pick it up, if it would do anything.

Suddenly–like in the attic–he felt irrational. Therefore, acting on instincts he'd prefer not to have, the boy blew a raspberry a the whole room, and stomped back out, up the stairs and past his aunt who was sitting at her computer, and out the front door again.

He collapsed in a huff on the front steps, and buried his face in his arms.

_Screeeeech, screeeeeeeech, thud._

Naruto looked up, and cringed.

A mid-sized car had just come around the curve of the hill, and had accidently hit a small red fox that had been crossing.

The driver had swerved to avoid it, but no such luck; the poor animal was hit, and the car, which had almost stopped, slowly moved on.

Naruto felt sorry for the animal, and was about to get up to check on it–for he knew that it was probably dead–when something bit his fingers. Hard.

He yelped, and lashed out, hitting the fox on the head.

He stared. The fox growled at him, and bared its teeth, then settled down, and inched closer.

Naruto turned his eyes to the fox lying on the road. He started when he saw it's front leg twitch: it was still alive, but just barely. The whole lower half of it was crushed and its side fluttered up and down with frantic breaths.

There were large blackish streaks from the fox's eyes down the sides of its nose–a variation in fur colour, obviously. Naruto turned his eyes back to the fox that was happily clawing at his pant leg. It too had the same black markings on its face.

The fox stopped mutilating his pants for a second, and looked up at him with cunningly curious yellow eyes.

Naruto reached out tentatively to pet it, and it nuzzled his hand happily. He looked back at the struggling animal in the road, and watched, unconsciously holding his breath, as the animal gave one last pathetic twitch, breathed deeply, and then was still.

His fingers closed around nothing when he tried to rub the fox's ears.

It was no longer there.

Naruto swore, eyes the size of dinner plates.

* * *

**(1) Yes, okay, Iruka's not older than Kakashi--but his birthday is! (or so they tell me) I already had it typed out, and I didn't wanna change it, so whatever.**

**(2) I stole Minako's name from FastForeward because I'm a bad person. I used Arashi 'cause it's the most common one out there for the Yondaime. Something about the Summoning scroll had Arashi in the slot before Naruto's. ::shrug::**

OOOooOoOOOooooOOooo. ::cough:: 'K, done being retarded now.

Alright, so this chapter was even more disjointed and bad than the last one, but whatever. Too bad. I have no clue what happens when, so I just smooshed them all up in one bundle, and it'll start making more sense later.

And again, _sorry about not updating in foreevvveeerrrrrrr._ ::dodges tomatoes::


	13. Chapter 13

**BIRTHDAY SPECIAL! I AM 16! Yaaay me! **(nyer-her, I'm such a dork XP)This is actually just a plea for attention. ::attention -whore:: XD BUT, I have worked my ass off, to bring you **this**, magnificient piece! Ha-_ha!_ Yeah, I'm a loser, shaddap. Anyway, this was one of my favourite chapters. Because of the last bit. I was so looking foward to writing it, but I'm not quite sure I did it justice...:-(

Oh well. Appreciate the update. XD Ignore my lack of spellability.

**Disclaimer**: ...::snort::

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence, YAOI. Tsunade-angst. Kiba-idiot. Sasuke dancing. Naruto freaking out about everything. The usual. XD

**Pairings**: NaruSasu (working on it, 's getting there), InoNaru (minor), OroSasu (minor)

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

There were more people than anticipated. A good dozen kids from school, most of their parents, the lady from the grocery store, Mr. Ichiraku's entire extended family (twenty three of them in all), several teachers, neighbours, and a few strangers who simply wanted to help. 

All in all, a good turnout.

Kakashi surveyed the group with a critical eye over his book. Iruka was more useful, wandering from group to group handing out orange flags and giving tips on how to search.

Inuzuka Hana, Kiba's older sister and K-9 specialist, tapped Kakashi on the arm, drawing his attention.

"We're all set up, and it looks like everyone's ready," she said, pulling her long dark hair into a low ponytail. Her dog sat obediently at her feet, his wide blue eyes eager to get started. "You'll have to show us where to start."

"A'ight. Oi, Iruka! C'mon."

The two officers led the group to a place that Kakashi had discovered earlier that morning. It was relatively close to Naruto's house, just about half-way between his and the Hyuuga manor. The road led down a sharp curve through the woods, and right at the vertex of that curve was a small break in the trees where a small stream had cut its way through the ground. The tree on the far side had bark scraped off, and tire marks in the soft ground led the white-haired man to believe that this was the best place to start.

Kakashi handed Hana Naruto's orange t-shirt for her dog to smell. The dog yipped, and sniffed it enthusiastically.

The search party was split into groups of three, each carrying a number of the small plastic flags in order to mark places where there may be evidence of Naruto's passing.

Kiba trailed behind, clutching his flags to his chest. He couldn't help but think about how much Naruto would have loved them. They were his favourite horrendous colour after all.

"K-Kiba, we're going now. Shino h-has already started looking. A-are you alright?" Hinata asked, pale eyes looking at Kiba worriedly.

The brunette boy forced a laugh, and scratched the back of his neck–a gesture reminiscent of Naruto. "Y-yeah, I'm good. C'mon, we gotta go!"

* * *

"Hey! Look!" Chouji shouted excitedly. 

Shikamaru grunted, looking bored. He wouldn't have been there if Chouji wasn't such a nice guy. Also demanding and star of the wrestling team.

"It's his watch! Look, it's got his name on it! Hey!"

He pulled out one of the flags and dug it deep into the earth where they had found the watch.

"So troublesome..." **(1)**

* * *

Naruto ran ahead of the searchers, heading directly for the storm drain. 

"Hey! Heeey! Oi! Over here!" he shouted, waving his arms wildly. "Hellooo Wake up, people! I'm _HERE!_" He added a bounce to his get-everyone's-attention-dance.

He huffed, and watched the scattered people closely. They spread out, calling his name, searching under bushes.

_Grrr..._

"Hey, I think he's found something!" Hana shouted over her shoulder, as her dog dragged her...straight towards Naruto.

The dog growled again, eyeing him suspiciously.

Naruto felt hope rise inside his chest. _He can see me. He knows I'm here–YAY! Yeah, it's a dog, but that's okay._

Moving slowly, so as to not disturb or frighten the dog, he knelt on the moist ground, laying his palms flat against the dirt. "Hey, boy. Hi, you can see me, right?"

The dog whined and crept closer. More people had started arriving, excited that they were heading in the right direction.

"Yeah, that's it boy, c'mon." Naruto inched backwards, holding his hand out for the dog to sniff. "Come on, c'mere, _good boy_."

He kept moving backwards on all fours through the low ferns that surrounded the storm drain. He felt his feet hit the lip of it, and breathed out, "C'mon, atta boy, c'mon..."

There was a loud _crack_ as he put his hand down on an old stick, which snapped at the pressure. The dog yipped, startled, and took off, dragging Hana again.

"This way! I think he's caught the scent!"

Mr. Ichiraku took a moment to shove a flag into the ground less than five feet from Naruto, and raced after the rest of the group.

Naruto groaned and banged his head against the ground. "Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuckity, fuck."

He sat back up and wiped dirt from his face, shaking out his blond hair, and crossed his arms, pouting.

Then he froze.

Kiba stood at the crest of the hill, staring directly at the storm drain. His face was white under his tattoos, but expressionless.

"Kiba! C-come on, we h-have to follow the others," Hinata's soft voice carried through the woods, and Kiba turned away.

"Coming," he said, glancing back over his shoulder as he left.

* * *

It was hours later. The search had been unsuccessful, but they hadn't given up hope yet. Most people ended up camping in the woods, where the police had set up a site, while others went back home to restart the search in the morning. 

Tsunade had eaten dinner alone–really alone, not just 'Naruto's-At-A-Friend's-House' alone, but 'Oh-My-God-Naruto-Might-Not-Come-Home' alone. It was hard. She had made dinner for two, as if just expecting Naruto to just walk in and say "Hi! Sorry I'm late for dinner!"

It took effort to get back to work. Her mind was constantly distracted, always wondering whether or not Naruto was dead, or injured, or what.

Naruto sat on the stair leading from the second floor to Tsunade's study, right next to the living room. He watched her work, frowning slightly.

She was so stoic. So emotionless about the whole situation. It was almost impossible to believe that she even care what with the way she was reacting to his being almost _dead_. _Dying_.

"Y'know, it's funny."

Tsunade didn't react, and leaned over to bring a new folder to her computer, typing out the information. She sighed and took a sip of tea, brushing hair out of her face.

"You've always...had your fingers in–in everything, y'know. You've always controlled my life, invaded my _space._" Naruto jumped down, the stress and frustration from the day taking its toll on him. He crossed the room, 'til he stood by his aunts desk, watching her fingers move rapidly across the keyboard. "My _life_, my _room_."

He reached out, taking one of the folders from Tsunade's desk. She blinked, then turned away, looking for a new pen to correct something in the hard copy, and Naruto dropped the folder, grabbing her by the shoulders. Her honey-coloured eyes widened, startled.

"_DON'T–_don't feel a _thing_, granny! Don't _bother!_ You wouldn't wanna _ruin_ your pretty–pretty _face._ Your pretty face that means _more _to you than _I _do!" He shook her hard, and she raised her hands to try and grab his arms, but he slapped them away. With a snarl emphasized by the new whisker-marks on his face, he grabbed her jaw–the jaw of the face much too young for her years–and forced her wide eyes to meet his. "I'm _out there!_ I'm _dying_, granny, I'm _fucking dying_, an–and you're, you're _sitting_ here, with your _work_, and your _fucking tea_," he stood, and grabbed the cup of tea, hurling it at the wall where it shattered on contact. He took no notice of the burning liquid on his hands.

"I really wish you could _see _me, 'cause then you'd know how I _really, fucking felt._" Out of control, finally able to let go of the swirling, conflicting emotions built up inside of him. "I'm _sick_ of you! Sick of–of _you_, and this whole _fucking _world!" He spun around, and slammed his hands on the desk, taking hold of the first things his fingers touched and heaving it across the room–it was the keyboard. The flat-screen monitor tore loose as well, and he shifted his grip, slamming the whole thing into the wall. "Your friggin _perfect_ world, where you rule _everything_, and _you're_ the only _fucking important thing!_ I was gonna _be_ something, _granny_, I was gonna be something of my _own_, but that won't fit into your _world!_ Well, _too bad! _It's not _fucking __**perfect!**_"

With a ear-shattering _crash_, he picked up one of the IKEA chairs that sat in the study, and flung it through the large glass window. The sound of chirping crickets immediately filled the room, as well as the light patter of rain on the ground.

Naruto closed his eyes, the anger gone from his system.

When he opened it again–as expected–everything was as before, _perfect_.

Tsunade sighed again, and scratched her forehead, running her fingers through the long blonde locks that framed her face.

She turned in her chair again, and her teacup fell to the floor with a muffled thump, spilling liquid everywhere.

Tsunade swore softly, and dropped the files in her hands to try and mop up the mess. It would stain, probably. Herbal tea, for relaxation, unfortunately did nothing to lower her anxiety.

She picked up the cup, checking it for cracks, swallowed thickly, and started to cry.

Naruto stared.

The whole day, Tsunade had been trying to restrain herself, trying to keep her emotions in check–but no longer. The search had come up with nothing, _nothing_, and it just made her heart feel heavier.

She sobbed loudly, crouched on the plush carpet, holding the empty teacup to her chest like it was her missing nephew. Tears rolled down her cheeks, flushed red, and her face contorted with agony.

The boy she mourned over took a step forward, then hesitated, knowing it would do no good.

But he didn't care. He rushed to the grieving woman and wrapped his arms around her, holding her as close as possible, comforting her as best he could, even if she didn't know it. He felt horrible for his words, wanted to take them all back. It was only slightly reassuring that she had never heard him, but he still said them, which was the main problem.

He had _meant_ them, and now all he wanted was to take them back.

Naruto cradled his aunt, letting her rest her head against his shoulder, leaning his cheek on the top of her head as her body shook with sobs. There was nothing more that he could do.

* * *

It was almost midnight. Tsunade had gone to sleep, still sniffling, almost an hour ago, but Naruto felt no exhaustion in his body. He probably could sleep if he wanted to, but he was restless, and it didn't seem like he needed sleep. 

The blond wandered the darkened streets alone, hands in his pockets. He had come downtown to try and find some form of entertainment–he could probably sneak into all the movies he wanted, he thought with a snicker. Perk.

Loud voices distracted him from his contemplation of movies (Transformers seemed to be winning, but the Simpson's Movie was also quite tempting), and he turned to watch a door slam open in the quiet night. Light spilled out, flashing and annoying, and a woman shouted into the street, "Oi, Sas'ke! He's upstairs now, y'can come in!" She giggled, and held the door open as a dark shape detached itself from a wall and sauntered into the building. A club, from the pounding music.

Naruto was slightly gob-smacked to run into his nemesis so often, but shrugged. With nothing else to do, he might as well stalk the older boy. It wasn't like he'd notice. An evil grin lit up Naruto's face. Just thinking about all the dirty little secrets he'd find out made him giddy.

His face fell, and he shivered as Iruka's statement in the elevator came rushing back to him.

"_Raped."_

The door rebounded with a loud _bang_, and Naruto jumped to catch it before it closed for good. He was pretty sure it would lock if left to its own devices, and him knocking would have no effect.

The club was loud and brightly lit. Or, the really bright lights would flash really brightly for about a second, and just about all of them were strobe lights, so the general effect was more along the lines of epileptic shock, while still lighting the room decently.

Naruto dodged his way through grinding bodies, eyes locked on one black hoodie that was slowly making its way up to the second level. The music pounding through the club was mostly techno, with some other variations mixed in as well. No rap, from the looks of the patrons.

Naruto clambered up the metal stairs after Sasuke, apologizing every so often to people he stepped on. Not that it mattered, but it was the principle of the thing.

When he finally caught up with Sasuke, he was deep in conversation with a terrifying older man.

The man was roughly mid-late twenties, possibly early thirties. His skin was pale, and sort of pasty, though the light could have very easily been misleading. The man's face was half-covered in bandages, and his chest was bare–something apparently not uncommon there. He wore military pants, and his black hair was so spiky it looked dangerous. He had one arm wrapped around a younger...person, with soft features and long dark hair, who was smiling kindly at Sasuke while the other two talked. The younger person wore a pair of tight-fitting jeans and a loose, drape-y green shirt that floated around its figure enough to disguise any gender-distinguishing features.

"–Akatsuki, but he was kicked out. He gave me this," Sasuke was saying, as he handed the large man something small and shiny. The man grunted and fingered it reverently, holding it up to the light to inspect. "I figured that a thing like that could cost a good deal of money. Gold and rubies."

The man handed the small thing–which Naruto determined to be a ring from the way he hooked it around his little finger–to his companion, who studied it just as intently. When it spoke, it was with a voice as soft as its features.

"Looks genuine. Might be a good idea to have it checked by a professional, though, Sasuke-kun. But I think it can work out." It smiled serenely, and handed the ring back to the larger man.

Sasuke smirked, a gesture so casually familiar it made Naruto's stomach turn, and responded softly. Naruto couldn't hear what was said, but he could see the large man nod and murmur back. He threw his head back and gave a barking laugh as the person beside him chuckled politely behind one slim hand.

Sasuke lips quirked again, and he inclined his head to both people, and the man clapped him on the shoulder in a half-friendly, half-threatening kind of way, and said, "Why don't you go dance? You haven't been to visit us lately."

The black-haired boy nodded, and thanked each person with another slight incline of the head, and a soft "Zabuza-san, Haku-kun."

Then he turned away, and Naruto scampered after him, feeling completely out of it.

Naruto almost lost the older boy in the writhing crowd, but raced to keep on him as the crowd parted to surround the Uchiha.

Then Naruto fell to staring again, completely speechless–which pretty much a first.

The Uchiha unzipped his hoodie, and dropped his hood to reveal a black beanie like he had been wearing before. He shrugged the sweatshirt off his shoulders and wrapped it firmly around his waist. The night was hot and sticky, so instead of the usual turtlenecks and long-sleeved shirts, Sasuke wore a thin white t-shirt, with a design of an oriental dragon printed on it.

Naruto couldn't help thinking that the t-shirt flattered Sasuke's slim torso much more than the sweatshirt, as said boys hips started to move to the music and his well-defined muscles stood out under the fabric of the shirt.

Then a pale arm–there was something weird about the boys forearms, but the light was too bizarre to tell–rose to grab the beanie, and pulled it off with one swift move.

It wasn't spectacular. Sasuke's hitherto-unseen hair wasn't ten feet long and made of silk, and it was sort of lost in the flashing lights, but Naruto inhaled sharply anyway.

The hair wasn't exactly black, not really, but more a deep, deep shade of blue. Raven would be a better term, as the colours shifted to make black and then blue again. His straight bangs fell around his face looser than when hidden under the ever-present hood, and swayed softly as the pale boy's movements picked up speed with the tempo. The back was artfully layered and wild–unusual, after a day stuffed inside a skull-tight cap. It was feathered enough to stick up in the back, and Naruto was reminded immensely of a duck's ass.

The music was in full swing, and Sasuke threw himself fully into it. He writhed and twisted, hips undulating and feet pounding along with the rest of the crowd. His hair flew everywhere as he bounced his head with the beat. He raised his arms into the air, body arching like a cat's, and brought them down again to hold in front of his chest as he moved.

He wasn't an amazing dancer–but he was wonderful to watch. The music _fit_ him, it _worked_ with him. It was like he was made for the music, as he danced fluidly, wildly. It was unrestrained beauty, a releasing of pent-up fears, anxieties, worries, everything. Naruto could see as he danced that Sasuke was no longer the last Uchiha–no longer the most formidable person on campus, no longer the pain-filled boy who never had a proper childhood, no longer anyone–no one but Sasuke.

Just Sasuke.

"I see you," Naruto whispered, wonderingly. "I can see you..."

And Sasuke danced.

* * *

**(1) I'm sorry. I had to. XD It was necessary.**

WOOHOO.

The Naruto vs Tsunade thing was pretty much taken right from the movie...I feel bad about that, but it was so _good!_ I didn't do it justice...::sigh::

Now, I'm sleepy, so I won't be responding to many reviews, but I LoVE YOU ALL ANYWAY:heart:

Okay, to **Lunar Chasmodai**, you're _so_ awesome. ::net-hugs you back:: And about the fox thing, well, if you read closely, the fox shows up _after_ its been hit by the car--but its still alive. So, when the fox that tries to eat Naruto's pants disappeares, the fox in the road is dead (it's the same fox, JFYI). And Naruto--up 'til this point thinking he was dead--realizes that he's not dead either, just caught in limbo. Hooray for not-dead Naruto!

And the **LeiseFlustern**, sorry I'm so crap at explaining things. ;; But I'm gonna try again. Okay, Naruto throws Sasuke off the building--then things go normal, and Sasuke's _still_ on the building (never been thrown off) and Naruto's still where he threw Sasuke off, looking over the side of the building, where Sasuke _would_ be, _if_ Naruto actually managed to throw him of. But he didn't, so he wasn't , so no.

That didn't help at all, but it makes sense to me. I'm not sure if that helps things, or if I'm crazy. ::shrug::

Anyway, Zabuza and Haku made me happy. I was gonna have it be Juugo, but then I decided--enormous scary man? Durrh, _Zabuza! _::snerk::

I need more sleep.


	14. Chapter 14

**Heeeey****, guess who's not dead? Eheh, sorry about the lack of update in forever. I'm in school, and that means, in order for me to pass my classes, I have to actually do the work, which otherwise I would totally blow off, but no-can-do if I wanna get into college. T.T Eehhhn. **

** Also, I've become terribly addicted to Solitaire. It's bad for my health, but I _can't help myself..._ ::cries::  
**

**Disclaimer**: ...::snort::

**Warnings**: Language, mild violence, YAOI. Sasuke-torture. Kiba finally stands up for himself (a little)

**Pairings**: NaruSasu (working on it, 's getting there), OroSasu (minor)

**Summary**: Naruto has always had dreams of being invisible. After a falling out with his aunt and a run-in with the school bad ass, Sasuke, he finds he really is. Somehow he has to make Sasuke see him, or he'll never be seen again. **Based on the movie_ The Invisible_**.

* * *

It was early in the morning, just barely past one a.m. Sasuke had crept back into his room via the fire escape, a shrieking, rusty piece of death-trap that was very likely to detach itself from the brickwork of the building at any minute. The window _clunked_ dully against the sill, and Sasuke winced, glancing over his shoulder to the door of the room, listening for his foster parents. 

Sakura was asleep in his bed, curled around a large stuffed slug.

Sasuke looked at her, face unreadable, and turned away abruptly, dumping out his school bag as quietly as possible. He opened drawers, pulling out clothes as fast as possible and shoving them into the beat up messenger bag, swearing silently as his hair fell in his face constantly. He whirled around, startled when he heard:

"Hey, Sasuke-kun…"

Sakura had woken up, blinking sleepily at him. Her red hair was pulled back into a messy braid, and for about two seconds she looked way older than she should.

"Hey yourself," Sasuke whispered back, setting the bag down gently. He crossed the room quickly and sat on the side of the bed. "You shouldn't be awake now."

"Are you going?"

The boy paused. His sister—not blood related, but she might as well be for how much he cared about her—was far too observant for someone so young.

He sighed. "Yeah." One pale hand reached out to brush hair away from Sakura's round face. "Only for a little while."

Sakura glanced down, and her thin arms clutched the purple slug closer to her body. "Are you gonna go away and not come back?" She lifted her eyes again and caught Sasuke's eyes in a piercing stare.

"No. I'll come back." Sakura dropped her gaze, and Sasuke reached forward, grabbing her chin firmly, but not roughly, and lifted her face to his. "I'll come back," he insisted.

Sakura nodded.

She didn't believe him, but she would humour him for as long as he looked so haunted. She yawned again, raising her hand to cover her mouth.

"Here."

Sasuke ducked his head and reached up to his neck. He fiddled with the back of his shirt for a second, 'til he withdrew the chain of a necklace.

It was choker sized, though one made for someone of a larger stature than Sasuke, and the red and black beads stood out against his pale skin. The tiny red and white fan fell to the hollow of Sasuke's neck, between his collarbones. His fingers moved over the clasp, and unhooked it. He coiled it in his hand and held it out to Sakura.

"I don't want it."

Sakura was adamant.

Sasuke was stunned.

"It—" he hesitated, thrown by Sakura's refusal, "It belonged to my brother. I've kept it with me since—I want you to have it."

"But I don't want it. You need it more than I do."

Sasuke looked at his sister, and silently refastened the choker around his neck, tucking it back under his shirt.

* * *

The door slammed open, and Naruto jumped so much that he fell off the chair. He winced, rubbing his backside and looked up into the purpling face of Haruno Yashin. 

"How the hell did you get in? Get out."

Naruto almost shit himself at the tone in Yashin's voice, before turning to look where the blonde man's glare was directed.

Sasuke had stood as soon as Yashin had entered the room, and glared back defiantly at the older man. He moved stiffly, but silently, and grabbed his bag from the floor. The teen gave one last look to Sakura, and a small, sad smile, before he shoved roughly past his foster father.

The man followed him down the dark hallway.

"You know everyone looking for you? It was on the news, you killed some sad fuck, and now you're a fucking felon. Get out of my house, and stay the fuck away."

Sasuke rummaged through the kitchen, giving no indication that the other man even existed. Yashin snarled, but stayed by the kitchen door.

"Your court date is in two weeks. We're not responsible if you don't fucking show up. You get out, and whatever this is with that kid, I want no part in it, you hear me?"

The raven-hared teen finished stuffing food into the bag, and turned on the ball of his foot, stalking towards Yashin like a panther. He came up close, so close that he could feel Yashin's sour breath on his face, and stared up into dark green eyes.

He smiled.

Naruto shivered from where he stood by the front door; it wasn't a pretty smile.

"I find out you did anything—_anything_—to Sakura…and I won't hesitate to kill you too."

With that he reached up, grabbed his foster father by the ears, and wrenched him down into a mocking, bruising kiss, before shoving the man away.

"Thanks for a good time," Sasuke sneered, and left the apartment.

* * *

Outside, Sasuke sank down to the ground, back against the door. He pushed his fists against his clenched eyes, pressing until colourful shapes and patterns flashed before his vision. He gave it a second more—until the pressure was too much—and let his head fall back to stare at the watermarked ceiling. 

"It's all your fault, Sasuke. You know that, don't you? It's all your fault," Naruto said, crouching next to his tormentor. No matter what he saw, he couldn't help but resent the other boy for existing. For taking away his own existence so fast, so easily.

The blond gave a bitter chuckle, blue eyes closing, scarred cheeks scrunching up. "It's funny, y'know? The first time in my life that everyone's paying attention to me…and none of them can see me. 'Cause the one pers—no. Fuck you."

Thinking led to too much more thinking. Naruto preferred to not think, not speculate. Most of the time, anyway.

"Fuck you, you're a fuckin' bastard, bastard," he growled, puffing his cheeks out like s disgruntled chipmunk.

Sasuke sighed, almost in response, and squeezed his eyes shut again before pushing himself up and away from the door. He grabbed his bag, and walked away from his home, hands deep in his pockets, and shoulders rounded in defeat.

* * *

"I'm going to the police." 

Sasuke snorted, and wrapped his arms closer around him, feeling the temperature drop even more. "Like hell you are."

It was a half-past three in the same morning, and the four of them had met by the train station when Kiba had called Sasuke.

"I'm serious, I'm going to call the police," Kiba insisted, his dark eyes narrowed at the other. Sakon and Tayuya stood behind Sasuke, looking vaguely intimidating (Sakon would have been more so if he stopped yawning and didn't have make-up on only one eye; Tayuya looked just as terrifying as she always did, but the effect was ruined by the fact that she was half-asleep and was wearing a fuzzy purple sweater underneath her grungy jacket). "I was there with the search party, they were almost on top of the body. I swear, I—I'm not going to jail. I won't. They were _this—_" he emphasized by holding his fingers up in a pinching motion, "—close to finding him. A few more feet and they would have—"

Sasuke cut him off. "Well, if they were that close, and _didn't_ find him, than they're not coming back. Search parties can only go on so long, and if they didn't find him when they were _this_—" he held his fingers up, intimidating Kiba, "—close, they're not going to."

"I'm going anyway. This is your fault, all of this is your fault, and you should be punished," Kiba said, his voice quaking slightly, but his face resolved. "You're going to go to jail, and get the punishment you deserve, bastard."

Sasuke stepped closer, and his two lackeys woke up a bit more.

"Oh yeah? Well, lemme tell you something. You're _just_ as much at fault as we are. You'd go to jail too."

Kiba shook his head.

"No? You were there. You saw it. You sat, and you watched, and you didn't do a _thing_ to stop it. It's your fault too," Sasuke said, his voice getting softer with each statement until he was almost whispering. "So shut the fuck up, and don't think about going to the police again, dog-breath."

He turned away, and poked Sakon and Tayuya awake again, leading them away from Kiba.

The dog-lover sighed, and scratched one tattooed cheek, before rubbing his tired eyes.

"Godfuckingdamnit, Naruto." He signed, and looked up at the cloudy sky, pink with reflected light from the city. "You were supposed to be in fucking _England_."

* * *

O-ho-ho! 

To all my wonderful readers who have kept with me 'til now, I'm so sorry for taking so long, but I do hope you will continue to read, and I will also (hopefully) continue to update in a timely manner. Sort of. Maybe.

Probably. I swear.

Much LOVE!!!


End file.
